We have had several problems and concerns as citizens of Fayetteville with downtown parking issues, rules, and unknown changes. For example, two years ago on Valentine’s Day, we dined at Pierro’s Italian Bistro and parked across the street. What a surprise it was to return to the car and find a ticket! Why would we be getting a ticket on Valentine’s Day night? Plus, we didn’t know about parking fees or where one would pay at that time.
This remains a confusing issue, as it is for other residents we know. We have now seen the signage about where to pay, but that’s all the information we have. In addition, we still never know where to park for sure – where is free vs paid parking? What are the latest rules? After reading the article in UCW, we understand more, but more concerns have risen about possible high fees, increased ticketing times, and having a ticket quota to meet.
Parking fees from 9-5 seem reasonable and comparable to other locations but increasing the time from 8-7 does not. This would not be expected to local citizens and visitors, and getting a ticket creates distaste and hard feelings. This is not what Fayetteville needs.
An example of a city we enjoy visiting is Winston Salem. They have a parking charge of $1.00/hour, 9-5 – excluding weekends. This is reasonable.
Having a quota of how many tickets you plan on getting is not a good business practice. Back to our Valentine’s night ticket. We should have been able to enjoy an evening out without finding that someone was looking to ticket people (on a holiday, at that). Again, this creates a bad feeling, whereas a positive Fayetteville image is preferred.
Sincerely,
— Michele and Rick Movius
Fayetteville