What if they built a parking structure and nobody came.
The cynic in me fears that the time for such intensive
infrastructure may have passed as the ART scar that runs across the heart of Nob
Hill has robbed our neighborhood of the charm that made it a destination. Ripping out Central’s tree lined median so that buses dominate and define
the streetscape and attempting to cross the gauntlet becomes a fool’s errand
has left the business district on life support.
In a better world the visionaries at city hall who spoke of economic
hubs and billions in investment would admit to their folly and commit to fix
what they broke- but we all know that ain’t happening. Still, my heart goes out to all the merchants
in the neighborhood whose businesses have suffered or disappeared so I support any
collaboration between the residents and business owners that may help the
neighborhood move forward.
Paul
_______________________________________________Neighbors,
I was involved in stand alone parking structure studies and property searches for them in Nob Hill years ago. The problem is procurement of affordable land and complex construction costs. It was determined that because of the expense, upkeep and SECURITY (they attract vagrants) that it was not a sustainable public project even if fees were charged - look at the eyesores they have become in downtown.We then engaged some private developers to study their feasibility. They determined that a parking garage was feasible only if a large housing development was built on it - like the condo projects we are seeing in our area.
Perhaps trying for a parking garage is aiming too high in this early stage of a Nob Hill comeback. That might be Phase 2 or 3 - we’re not even at Phase 1 as yet! The project Sharmin was talking about could be immediately doable and achievable at a relatively low cost. Sharmin, based on a meeting I had with some City people recently, indications are that there might be some modest amounts of money available for such projects.Maybe we should re-evaluate current and future parking opportunities?Jean
Sent from my iPhoneOn Mar 25, 2021, at 5:51 PM, Sharmin Dharas <sharmin@heritagehospitalitygroup.com> wrote:
Jean-
Thank you for bringing this up. As you may be aware I am a board member on the Nob Hill Main Street organization. We had also noticed that one of the biggest complaints for the merchants on Nob Hill was the lack of parking available. Nob Hill Mainstreet had come up with an idea to start the "Parking Pilot Program" this program used private parking lot spaces across nob hill by renting the spots quarterly by the city from the business owner and marking it as public parking. We analyzed what parking lots/spots were used according to business times and after hours and marked them accordingly for the use. It was a success, however, because of the lack of funding for it to continue the program was stopped. I know that the NHMS board and NHNA would love to collaborate and make something happen! Thank you for addressing this issue. Hopefully we can come to some permanent solution!
Best,
Heritage Hospitality Group
Sharmin S. Dharas
3711 Central Ave NE | Albuquerque, NM | 87108
Direct: 505.401.6549 | Email: sharmin@heritagehospitalitygroup.com
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On Thu, Mar 25, 2021 at 5:28 PM Joan Weissman <joan@joanweissman.com> wrote:
Jean is right. Would it be weird to suggest a commercial parking structure somewhere central to the neighborhood? Parallel parking on Central is very difficult now because of ART narrowing the lanes. Can someone come up with a practical structure that wouldn’t be too horrible looking?
On Mar 25, 2021, at 1:40 PM, Jean Bernstein via Neighbors_nobhill-nm <neighbors_nobhill-nm@mailman.swcp.com> wrote:
Neighbors,
I am happy for more businesses and activities that will be contributing to Nob Hill’s revival! Welcome!
The only impediment to our collective happiness will be highly accelerated parking needs. In a recent meeting with CABQ Planning and Nob Hill Main Street, a survey of area businesses listed parking as one of the top issues facing the commercial corridor’s successful growth between Girard and Carlisle. I know it seems silly at this moment with so many businesses either gone for good or still at limited capacity, but once the world returns to normal, it's going to get crowded. One of ART’s little known legacies was the reduction of parking along Central Avenue. Months before construction of the bus route began, city employees quietly restriped every block, resulting in an approximate reduction of about 20% fewer spaces (about 25 spaces less). Nob Hill buildings are old style (thank goodness!) and many cannot provided the needed off street parking (read parking lots) that are required to service their customers. This, of course is why the district is still one of the most charming areas in our city.
Additionally, the old Kelly’s has been purchased (don’t know by whom yet) but assume it will be a brewery type place. Nob Hill will once again be alive with people hopefully visiting from other parts of the world AND Albuquerque. With increased popularity will come more cars. So, here we are again - the decades old dilemma of Nob Hill’s potential success marred by the love/hate relationship between popular businesses’ parking needs and residents’ desire for control of their streets. I seem to remember that Nob Hill Neighborhood requested and got parking by permit only to keep overflow parking off their streets.
I don’t have the answers but there are some mutually acceptable solutions. For example, there are some commercial side streets that still have some parking capacity. This I do know - we will all need to work together as businesses and neighbors to nurture Nob Hill’s continued success and evolution into a healthy business district that works for everyone. We will need CABQ to make this happen but only if NHNA and NM Main street unite to co-operate for this important cause.
I’ve been around long enough to see the results of what happens when the businesses and neighborhood are at odds. After years of waiting here’s our chance to really get the district going in a great direction!
Jean Bernstein
Flying Star Cafes
From: Neighbors_nobhill-nm <neighbors_nobhill-nm-bounces@mailman.swcp.com> On Behalf Of Sharmin Dharas via Neighbors_nobhill-nm
Sent: Wednesday, March 24, 2021 7:14 PM
To: Rahim Kassam <rahim.kassam@gmail.com>
Cc: David Garcia <david@halflifedigital.com>; Gary Eyster <meyster1@me.com>; KateGerwin@me.com; donna@cabq.gov; Neighbors Nob Hill <neighbors@nobhill-nm.com>; TheBoard NobHill-NM <theboard@nobhill-nm.com>
Subject: Re: [Neighbors] Liquor License Request, Happy Accidents, 3225 Central Ave. NE
Here here!
Well said David. I am in absolute support of this. “ We NEED adventurous new entrepreneurs to be supported in their endeavors in this neighborhood.” We as a community need to support new endeavors and give guidance and support where needed. Nob Hill does need a rebirth along with the new lights. I look forward to the new and bold! I am in favor for the request.
Kindest regards,
Sharmin
Sharmin S. Dharas
Heritage Hospitality Group
3711 Central Ave NE | Albuquerque, NM | 87108
Direct: 505.401.6549 | Email: sharmin@heritagehospitalitygroup.com
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On Mar 24, 2021, at 3:27 PM, Rahim Kassam via Neighbors_nobhill-nm <neighbors_nobhill-nm@mailman.swcp.com> wrote:
We NEED adventurous new entrepreneurs to be supported in their endeavors in this neighborhood.
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