City plans to create bike lanes on Spring Grove Avenue from near Hopple Street to Bank Street are facing some opposition from the Camp Washington Business Association, which is worried the removal of on-street parking could be a threat to their economic livelihood.
Spring Grove Avenue is considered a priority cycling corridor because it’s the only flat, direct route connecting seven neighborhoods to downtown. Bike lanes on Spring Grove Avenue were first installed from Avon Place in Camp Washington to Mill Creek Road in 2012; they continue on Spring Grove Avenue at the end of the Mill Creek Bike Path through Northside.
Joe Gorman, executive director of the Camp Washington Business Association and community organizer with the Camp Washington Community Council, says Spring Grove Avenue businesses have expressed concern that that installing bike lanes could cause delivery impediments and threaten employee parking.
Studies conducted by the city’s Department of Transportation and Engineering (DOTE) found on-street parking on Spring Grove Avenue was generally less than half-full, and most businesses on the street already have designated parking lots.
Queen City Bike Executive Director Nern Ostendorf says the conflict is mostly because this is a first for the neighborhood. “DOTE has a hard job trying to accommodate the interests of every party, and the Bicycle Transportation Program has an even harder job because they’re blazing new ground,” she says, noting challenges to convincing communities that the local cycling community is as active as it is.
Three options were discussed at the Camp Washington Community Council meeting on March 11, including DOTE’s preferred plan, which would add bicycle lanes to each side of the street, alternately consolidating street parking on the east and west sides of Spring Grove Avenue. Option 2 would consolidate all parking to the east side of the street and Option 3 would halt future bike lane development, instead forcing bikers to share lanes with cars and large semi-trucks.
DOTE is developing further proposals, and citizens are invited to submit feedback on the city’s website.
In response to the Business Association's concern about delivery impediments, the DOT's website clearly states that "All existing bus stops are mainatained, as are truck loading zones..." Also, I was at the meeting on monday, and they said there are currently about 200 on-street parking spaces total on both sides of the street. They see an average of 30 spaces being used, and never more than 50 (out of 200). So how in the world can these business owners assert that they won't have enough parking if the DOT consolidates from 200 to 100 spaces? Mathmatically it looks to me like they still have twice as much parking as they need!
You have to consider potential parking need as well as current use.
And while I am not a big fan of bike lanes & don't think they are needed there - they're just paint on the street & can be removed in the future if trends change.