Danville’s new 81-space public parking lot on Front Street is scheduled to open in the fall, with attractive landscaping and inviting walkways to Hartz and Prospect avenues, said Michael Stella, senior civil engineer with the town. He was addressing a group at the Danville Area Chamber of Commerce offices Tuesday morning.
“People are very protective of their parking,” Stella said. “The Town Council has been wise enough to invest in public parking.”
The town purchased the office building at 177 Front St., which was built in 1967, for $3.5 million. Although it was well maintained, Stella noted, the architecture was dated. The building will be demolished as soon as the remaining tenants vacate the offices, and crews remove the asbestos and the lead paint and deal with the PCBs in the fluorescent fixtures. Stella estimated the lot will be completed in time for the town’s fall downtown activities.
The new lot will have 63 full-sized spaces, 14 spaces for compact-sized vehicles and four handicapped parking spaces. It will also have parking for bicycles.
“It costs $55,000 per stall,” said Stella. “It’s a big investment.” He said nine of the 12 tenants have left the office building and their relocation is included in the price tag.
The lot on Front Street is situated between the historic Vecki House, now an office complex, and the Danville Town Meeting Hall. It backs up to the businesses of Sweet Magnolia, Forward Motion and Christie James Fine Jewelry Works. The project includes a pedestrian walkway to Hartz Avenue alongside Forward Motion. Stella said Sweet Magnolia also wants to develop the area behind its building and has agreed to pedestrian access.
Another walkway will extend to Prospect Avenue next to Prospector Square, which is under construction and will include retail shops and offices. It is scheduled to open this summer and will have 22 private spaces of its own.
The new town parking lot will have nice amenities, Stella said, including attractive trees, antique-style light poles and tile-art trash receptacles. The walkway to Prospect Avenue will pass under ironwork arches, and both walkways will be lit.
The new parking lot will have time restrictions but they have not yet been decided. When questioned about employees of downtown businesses parking in the new lot, Stella said there are 300 parking spaces elsewhere designated for employees.
The lot is funded by in-lieu fees paid by new businesses downtown and by redevelopment funds. The town recently changed downtown zoning to encourage retail investment and waived the $3,500 per space in-lieu parking fees for three years.
Responding to questions, Stella said the town’s improved Clocktower public parking lot on Railroad Avenue is almost completed, although it is already open for parking. Some delays were caused by PG&E; first the town had to wait three weeks to get the power turned off so the construction could begin, and now the town has waited nine months for PG&E to set the meter for the town to turn the power back on so the contractor can install the lights, timers and landscaping.
Some work halted during the holidays so customers could park closer to retail stores for their holiday shopping, said Mayor Karen Stepper, who also attended the presentation.
The reconfiguration of the Clocktower lot added approximately 50 new parking spaces to the downtown area. The project eliminated the sidewalk next to Railroad Avenue and improved the walkway next to the businesses for pedestrians to travel north and south.
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