About 140 people attended and many were passionately opposed to plans to bring meters and shorter visitor parking hours to the Northwest District neighborhood.
In previous meetings, local business owners were angrily opposed while area residents appeared to favor the plan. Last night objections came thick and fast from both sides.
The plan calls for two-hour meters along much of Northwest 21st and 23rd avenues, 90-minute meters close to West Burnside Street and three-hour meters in more residential and industrial areas.
The plan would require most people who live or work in the district to buy a city permit to allow them to park for longer than the 90-minute to three-hour limits.
Several residents objected to paying a fee for permits, others worried that glass and metal parking meters would not be compatible with the architecture in the neighborhood. A few residents called for building off-street parking structures before installing metered parking.
What, they asked, are The Timbers doing to solve their parking problem? Some suggested expanding fareless square to the Northwest commercial district to reduce parking demand.
"Comment on this plan is ludicrous," said Michael Gibbons, owner of Papa Haydn restaurant. "It's like being sat upon by an elephant and being asked to comment on the color of its toenail polish."
Many merchants said that restricting parking to 90 minutes or two hours in the commercial areas was unworkable.
Dr. Aazy Aaby, an ophthalmologist at Eye Health Northwest said "this could be the terminal event that drives us into the suburbs." He wanted the city to consider allowing? parking permit exemptions to all employees. The plan currently proposes that 50 percent of a business's full-time employees can obtain permit exemptions.
A theme throughout the evening from both residents and business owners: Why not return to the plan hammered out in 2002?
--Rebecca Koffman
Source: http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2011/10/unhappy_northwest_portland_bus.html
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