Not-So-Friendly Downtown Pensacola
When I first moved to Pensacola – a mere three years ago – one of the things I loved was how inviting downtown was. When we go downtown for lunch, or to the market, or to the symphony, it’s not like all the big cities where they gouge you for parking and then moan that no-one wants to come downtown. No, parking was free, and ample. It was a joy to go downtown.
Today, I was down picking up a friend to go to lunch. I got a shock:
This breaks my heart. I parked illegally, in a loading zone, while I waited for my friend.
If this is a downtown improvement, it is not one I fine user-friendly. Pensacola is trying to encourage people to come downtown, and has been successful. Why shoot the golden goose, getting greedy, putting in pay kiosks?? Why not give the customers a break? BOOOOOOOO and HISSSSSS to the Downtown Improvement Board.
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Olympia did this 2 years ago and after much hue and cry from the merchants and everyone, they are backing off and restoring some of the free parking again. I agree, it is not the way to encourage people to come downtown to spend their money.
I saw the same thing in Doha. People shopped downtown, even though malls were the new, cool thing, but when parking meters went in, the shoppers were outraged, and (LOL) did bad things to the parking meters. The meters were never actually activated, and were pulled out maybe six months or a year later, never having made a nickel. Or a riyal 🙂
If you want people to LOVE to come downtown, give them free parking. It’s so simple!