HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/7/2023 Item 6a, Gray
From:Heather Gray <
To:E-mail Council Website
Subject:Parking Rates Impact
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Hello there SLO CIty Council,
I know most of you personally, have supported or even worked on your campaigns... and you know that I'm usually very
supportive and try to look at the big picture. You must have solid reasons for increasing the parking downtown, but I
have to share that even though I love our city and local government, I don't believe this was a good decision for our
community.
I avoid downtown and schedule meetings, gatherings, and shopping anywhere else. It feels like a luxury to go
downtown... and that's not the SLO I love and believe in. It's decreased accessibility to downtown and affected the local
businesses.
One example of a direct impact parking has had on my work is for a dance performance at SLOMA. For dress rehearsal
and the day of the show, it cost me $180 for 4 dancers to park downtown for a free performance for the community. We
considered carpooling but it was not feasible given our variety of schedules and locations, and truly not something we
should have to consider in a small city like SLO. This may not seem like a big deal but when you're an independent artist
and working to cultivate and grow the arts here... expenses like these add up and make me reconsider performances like
this downtown.
I urge you to reevaluate the price of parking and consider decreasing it, so it's more in line with comparable cities. Even
Santa Barbara is $2.50-3.00/hour with 75 minutes free. At a time when our local businesses and citizens are already
struggling financially, making our main city center less accessible is not something we should be doing. I recognize that
you need revenue from parking, but the jump to $4.50 was drastic and already changing the makeup of downtown.
Thank you for listening and for your consideration.
Best,
Heather
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HEATHER GRAY | she/her/hers
artist | advocate | coordinator
San Luis Obispo, CA | Boulder, CO
Cell: 408-391-0241
heatherannegray@gmail.com
LinkedIn
Heather Gray Photography
heathergray.art
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