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Show Put your money where your car is, say Main Street parking lot owners ' I-'-' "M j' . N'. 1 f I ',--- . ; , ;V- I r "X " i ,v ,' i. . v I 'k -. " Ly - i ,. ' - jr I f L : , , - H - . ' v ' " " ' V k . . . " " '' I - photo by Teri Gomes Pay to stay that is the deal at the Timberhaus parking lot these days. by Teri Gomes A lot where you pay for the privilege of parking is not an uncommon sight in any large city. But the pay parking lot at the base of Main Street in Park City has taken local residents and regular visitors a bit by surprise. After years of struggling to keep his lot free for his customers, Matt Alvarez, owner of Timberhaus Ski and Sport, has leased the area east of the store to Diamond Parking, which is charging $1 an hour to park there. Customers of the Timberhaus receive a validation with purchases, as do shoppers at nearby Great Garb and Minors Only. Alvarez says he regrets the move, but contends people used to consider his parking lot public land, and treated it as such. "Many employees of Main Street businesses would park their cars in the lot all day long. I tried talking to them, putting notes on their windshields and the like, but the next day they'd be at it again. With parking at such a premium on Main Street I really felt this was the only way to get this off my back and let the customer get in and out." E. Lee Towers, manager for Diamond Parking in Utah, said the Park City lot represents the company's first venture into a resort community. Diamond has lots in 31 major cities in nine states. He admits the initial response to the paid lot was not favorable. "Quite a few people were surprised and angry at first," said Towers. "But now we are finding people are thankful to find a place to park at all." When asked if Diamond was looking at other Park City locations, Towers acknowledged the company had been in contact with several Main Street area property owners who may decide to turn their lots and parking structures over to them for management. "It's really a matter of supply and demand," said Towers. "And at $1 an hour that seems to discourage all-day parking by employees. ' ' Towers said that while city officials were generally helpful, he found the process of obtaining a business license here ''a lot more complicated than Salt Lake." City treasurer Dave Hellwig pointed out there was no precedent in setting fees for something of this nature. "We decided finally upon $1 per space in this case, 16 spaces per year for his license. However, if he opens up other paid parking lots, they will require separate licenses," Hellwig said. |