Motorists using Lords Place will be able to park for longer if proposals to be considered by next week's Council meeting are accepted.
A report to next Tuesday's meeting suggests that the length of timed parking limits in the recently upgraded section of Lords Place (between Summer and Kite Streets) be increased.
The sections currently marked as 15-minute limits (parallel parking spaces) would be extended to 30 minutes. The sections currently marked as 30-minute limits (angle-parking) would become 1-hour parking zones. Prior to the upgrade there was a 1-hour parking limit in the street. The 15 and 30-minute limits were introduced following a parking study undertaken last year.
PARKING CHANGES: Timed parking limits in Lords Place will be considered by Council at next week's meeting.
The proposed changes have come in response to feedback from businesses and data collected by Council staff. Council also undertook an online survey of businesses in the street that support the proposed changes.
Orange City Council Director of Technical Services Ian Greenham said the return to paid parking in the Ophir Car Park has created more opportunities to park in the precinct and allows more flexibility on Lords Place between Summer and Kite streets.
"We have found that parking has freed up in the Ophir Carpark and in surrounding streets and also in the Lords Place section where the Future City Project has been delivered. There is a still a place for varied time limits but businesses preferred 30-minutes ahead of 15-minutes. The 30-minute slots align with the parking times in Summer Street" Mr Greenham said.
Parking vacancy rates across the precinct including Lords Place south, surrounding streets, the Ophir Car Park and the City Centre Car Park range between approximately 10 and 60 per cent.
"The vacancy rates give us some flexibility to revisit the time limits. We're aiming to get the balance right between steady turnover and providing the length of parking stays that drivers and shoppers need. A close assessment has shown that there are consistently vacant parking spaces in that block which aren't being used, and businesses are telling us longer stay parking in Lords Place is what's needed," Mr Greenham said.
"Parking is a complex issue and when we change a limit in one site it can impact on parking in other areas. We will continue to monitor the project."
If adopted by next Tuesday's Council meeting, it's expected the current parking signs will be replaced by the end of the month. The new time-limits wouldn't be immediately enforced to let drivers get used to the changes.
