The long debate over downtown parking continues.
On Monday, the Representative Town Meeting’s Transit Committee voted 7-2 against recommending that the full RTM spend $630,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to redesign Jesup Green, and the nearby Imperial Avenue parking lot.
A week earlier the Planning & Zoning Commission put off their own vote on a plan for those 2 sites, plus Parker Harding Plaza. The P&Z discussion will continue at next Monday’s meeting (April 8, 7 p.m., Zoom).
Meanwhile, the Flood & Erosion Control Board and the Conservation Commission have both approved the Jesup Green redesign.
As downtown parking remain stalled, 2 residents offer differing views of the plans.
Downtown Plan Implementation Committee (DPIC) chair Randy Herbertson writes:
Downtown Westport master planning has been underway for more than 30 years — with consistent objectives, countless hours and investment, but little execution.
Here is a deck with pertinent excerpts.
Formed after the 2015 Master Plan exercise, DPIC was created to support town efforts to bring plans finally to fruition, after failed attempts in the 2 previous master planning exercises.
This screenshot from the Downtown Plan Implementation Committee shows the Parker Harding lot and Saugatuck River.
When I took over as chair of DPIC in 2021, I was tasked with bringing a number of our bigger project visions to life. Springboarding from the 2015 plan, we summarized the vision into 5 key pillars articulated on the website we re-vamped and launched at that time.
As identified, a careful balance must be struck between maintaining the right level of safe, accessible and up-to-code parking with green space for pedestrians, river views, and flood resiliency.
Our decrepit lots have been in need of updating for decades. Our residents (especially those who don’t attend town meetings) have consistently told us they desire better access to our unique downtown riverfront.
But we can’t invent land to perfectly serve the divergent needs of all, including the merchants who want close employee parking, exclusive loading zones and no loss of spaces for customers, as well as the many who provide opinions that are not founded on the expertise we hire professionals to give us.
Our overall master plan does not call for the loss of any parking inventory, and future prospects of a relocated Police Department and possibly a parking deck (if warranted somewhere once we assess the impact of timed parking areas and new lot configurations) will provide even more.
Currently, we just want to complete our “commerce sub-district” with Parker Harding plans, which are now complete.
Due to the heavy pushback on short-term parking inventory loss, the Department of Public Works developed a solution in the only close-in area possible: the top of Jesup. This development area has been in the master plan schematic since April of last year, and was shown in public forums and on the website.
The Jesup Green redesign plan.
The current proposed DPW plan calls for 3 phases — the first 2 to be completed with the Parker Harding work.
When done with just these 2 phases, we will have net zero loss in parking and more green space on Jesup than today, all closer to the river. It will also provide more Americans with Disabilities Act-accessible and clustered parking to serve the many library and Levitt events, which was part of the objective on this “culture sub-district” side.
This said, we had ideally hoped to assess this further with holistic planning and public feedback devoted to Jesup and Imperial (funding for which was not approved this week by the RTM Transit Committee, although it still goes to full vote next week.) However, if the cost of progress is moving in phases, we may have to do so.
The whole downtown process marks a new low in delays, many of which are quizzically politically driven and divided.
It’s been 30 years. Isn’t it time to provide a downtown experience that will support real estate values and serve all our residents?
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Toni Simonetti has lived in Westport for nearly 24 years. A retired corporate communications executive and former journalist, she has become “passionately interested in good municipal governance, as the town works through a number of high-stakes projects.”
She writes:
After reviewing the most recent to-and-fro on the town’s uncertain plans to address downtown parking, I am compelled to voice my strong objection to proposed plans for the Jesup Green and adjacent parking areas, and further to express my concern once again for a less-than-transparent process.
I strongly oppose the Jesup plan for the following reason: It will pave over 1/3 of the green space known as Jesup Green. That is a travesty. The town’s Plan of Conservation and Development puts a priority on green space. We are losing green space in Westport at an alarming rate.
I am aware of the counterargument that Phase 2 and Phase 3 will restore the green space lost. However, that is a pipe dream contingent on Westport getting $400 million in capital projects approved (so that the police station is moved out of the Jesup area). There is no guarantee Phase 2 or 3 will ever see the light of day, be approved, or be funded.
Until there is a concrete plan that includes the immediate replacement of green space, the Jesup plan should be rejected.
Second, to pre-empt the expected protestations about lack of transparency claims: The public was not made fully aware of the Jesup Green parking plan until mid-March, when a schematic was first made public for a Planning & Zoning Commission 8-24 hearing.
Trees at the top of Jesup Green. (Photo/Jennifer Johnson)
Here is the tick-tock:
In October 2023, the P&Z expressed reservations about Parker Harding parking plans, citing among other things a lack of a holistic plan for downtown parking in general, and at Jesup and Imperial lots.
On January 12, 2024 — unbeknownst to the public — 2 town agencies acted in accord to write up appropriations requests for studies:
- Fire/Emergency Medical Service to study proposals for a new joint headquarters with the Police Department and
- Public Works design appropriation to pave 1/3 of Jesup Green into 44 parking spots, and modify parking spaces at the Imperial lot.
On January 17, the public got its first cryptic glimpse that the town would pave over 1/3 of Jesup Green when the chair of the Board of Finance issued its agenda for its Feb. 7 meeting, with items #8 and #9 as follows:
Upon the request of the Fire Department Deputy Chief, to approve an appropriation of $110,000 from the Capital and Non-Recurring Fund Account 31502220-500188 for work to update and merge FD conceptual plans to include PD and EMS in a new concept analysis for a Joint Public Safety Facility.
Upon the request of the Director of Public Works, to approve an appropriation of $630,000 from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Fund 51003310-500189-13012 for design and permitting of the redevelopment of Jesup Green and the Imperial Lot.
On February 7, both agenda items were withdrawn from the Board of Finance meeting. It seems the items were a surprise to more than just myself.
On February 8, the Downtown Plan Implementation Committee, the hardworking appointed body charged with all things downtown, held an in-person-only meeting at 8:30 a.m., which I attended and at which no detailed information was given on the Jesup Green plan other than additional parking was being considered.
Members of the public, and even a member of the DPIC who is also on the RTM, expressed surprise by the sudden appropriation requests that appeared out of nowhere. We all had a lot of questions. The answers pointed to one person who was not there: the first selectwoman.
On March 6, the BOF reviewed these items and approved the appropriations. There was no specific detail or schematic posted or presented in the BOF meeting packet on where the additional parking would go. A specific plan was not shared, though some questions were answered verbally,
The Jesup schematic plan was drawn Feb. 15, but was not made public until posted in mid-March as part of Planning and Zoning’s March 24 meeting process.
On March 14, DPIC again held an in-person-only meeting, which I was not able to attend. There is no specific Jesup Green parking plan posted in conjunction with the meeting.
On March 24, the P&Z heard 8-24 requests for Jesup Green and Parker Harding. Though much has been publicized on Parker Harding Plaza, this was the first real look at what was planned for Jesup Green.
Redesign plan for Parker Harding Plaza. The Saugatuck River is at the bottom; backs of Main Street stores are at the top.
I believe once the public comprehends the paving plan for Jesup Green, they will be outraged. The P&Z did the right thing by continuing the matter to April 8 – at which time I suggest they issue a negative 8-24 report.
I live on Evergreen Parkway in RTM District 9, in what I consider a downtown neighborhood. I love the location of my home because I can – and do — walk downtown to shop, dine and recreate.
There is much ado about parking, but it’s not a problem for us (though I empathize with downtown merchants and support their stance).
This is a walkable town and one big reason why I choose to live here. I walk my dog Max nearly every day past Town Hall, along Main Street, through Parker Harding Plaza and along the river, then across the Post Road down the Riverwalk around the Library and Levitt Pavilion over to the Imperial lot and up Imperial, back over to my neighborhood. Sometimes Max detours us over to the Winslow dog park on our way home.
My Westport is a walkable Westport. Please preserve our green space.
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