Sault launches parking survey to determine usage, parking habits and needs
A survey on parking at city-owned lots throughout the city, as well as on-street parking downtown, began recently in the Sault.
“In most municipalities, parking is a contentious issue,” said Salvatore Marchese, Sault's Downtown Association executive director.
“This is giving us the opportunity to do something that’s data-driven.”
Contentious is right. Saultites we spoke to had a lot to say about parking in the city.
“The two-hour limit makes it hard to do any real shopping downtown,” one person said.
“I know there are some parts around here where it’s difficult to find a parking spot," said another local.
At this point in the process, surveyors are strictly looking for data, such as how many parking spaces there are and what the level of usage is.
Over the next few months, the focus will switch to public input, understanding the parking habits and needs of people in the Sault.
An open house event is a welcome idea for one resident, who wants to see a lot of change for parking in the city and has ideas on how it should happen.
“We have lots of empty lots, like the Plummer Hospital, it’s sat empty for a decade,” the resident said.
“That could be used to create a parking spot like an actual building.”
Whether it’s the time limit on free parking lots, or the price of parking along Queen Street, the Downtown Association hears about it.
Marchese said until now, feedback from the public couldn't be used to make changes in the city.
That’s something he said will change as a result of this survey.
“The city will take that information and do an analysis and see if they’re going to make a recommendation to council,” said Marchese.
“If it’s something that’s going to be for reference, then it’s something that we can access. But it’s just to have something so an analysis can be made to determine what’s best.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
BREAKING New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark #MeToo trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
Residents of northern Alberta First Nation told to shelter in place
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
First in Canada procedure performed at London, Ont. hospital
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.