Posted by Neponset on October 8, 2008 at 6:26 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I don’t like the idea of paying to park, but that seems to be the reality of things around Charleston. Seems to me, that if the town had stayed to the theme of a simple pier for fishing, observation, etc, rather than this grand park, maybe the town could have offered free parking.
From the practical side, how much of a walk will it be to get from the park to the bridge walk way?

Posted by palmettobug on October 8, 2008 at 7:29 a.m. (Suggest removal)

At this time there are absolutely no problems. There have not been any accidents or break-ins. Why does the government feel the need to come in and screw things up? Santos used to be one of us.

Posted by counterpoint on October 8, 2008 at 7:40 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Thanks for pointing out the ludicrousness of Santos argument, Thomas. Saved me the trouble.

If people are parking on private property, how is it that Council is going to force them to park somewhere else? Is that not the property owner's responsibility to say, "No," at which point the city COULD offer an alternative?

Posted by wjhamilton3 on October 8, 2008 at 7:58 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Parking shouldn't be such a huge issue at this park. The primary CARTA bus line for Mt. Pleasant, The #40 connects most of Mt. Pleasant to this park, running from beyond Highway 41 at Super Walmart, past hundreds of businesses and parking lots to and through the park. It currently runs over the park, but it would be easy for it to loop through.

During the public input project, we repeatedly suggested buiding a bus pull off and stop into the road running through the park with benches or shelters. That would allow the bus to pull out of traffic while loading and unloading. This could have served both CARTA and shuttle busses being used for special events. It would have connected most of Mt. Pleasant and huge parking resources off site to the park as well as Charleston, while preserving traffic flow.

Most major park events are held on Sunday when all those parking lots on Johnnie Dodds Blvd. are nearly empty. We could have used transit to leverage the park space and help create a more functional system.

We don't want to park in our park. Thats a parking lot, not a public green space. That's the sort of park you would build if you were actually building a parking lot for the proposed convention center instead. What we've done is pave large parts of our park when we could have been using all those empty parking lots.

For large events in particular, parking on site simply doesn't work. You have to use busses.

As far as I can tell, no bus pull offs or stops have been built. Some day we'll have to tear up curbing and sidewalks and add them at a much greater cost than if we had simply built them in the first place.

These aren't big, expensive things to build. It would have only added a few thousand dollars to the cost if it has been done as part of original construction.

We often take the CARTA flex bus to the County Park on the Isle of Palms. It's fun and you don't have to park or worry about sand in the car. My son enjoys it and often meets all sorts of interesting people.

Why can't our town get even simplet things right.

Posted by grainofsalt on October 8, 2008 at 8:19 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Jack... we're talking about whether or not bridge walkers might have to pay a dollar to park and you launch into one of your patented CARTA tirades. Sigh...

I hate to agree with Santos, but he's right about the safety issue. I've seen lots of instances of poor safety and judgement on that roadway by those parking or walking to the bridge around parked cars. And the businesses on that roadway don't deserve this to be an ongoing issue. Sure, the gas station wants those people there, coming in to buy bottled water and snacks, but that station did just fine before that bridge opened, so that argument is specious.

Someone yesterday complained that people were being asked to pay a dollar to walk. No they're not. There's no toll on the walkway leading to the bridge. But just because the walkway is there doesn't mean you get to park your SUV wherever you want in order to gain easy, convenient access. If you're so fond of walking, why not park at the Whole Foods lot and walk to the bridge. That lot always has plenty of open parking.

As I noted yesterday (but late in the day, so I'll repeat myself), have any of these gripers ever tried to get down Patriots Point Blvd in the afternoon? Try taking your kid to soccer practice (which I paid significantly more than $1 for) while all the walkers vie for position on the sidewalks and the roadside becomes strewn with parked cars. Why is it so outlandish to have them pay a measly dollar for the safe parking that MP is proposing. I have to pay more than that when I visit downtown and park.

"It might cause me to decide to walk on the beach instead..." one person was quoted as saying in yesterday's article. Fine. Enjoy it out there. Don't let the Ben Sawyer bridge hit you in the -ss on the way over. Or maybe you can catch the CARTA to get there. Right Jack?

Posted by singleroni on October 8, 2008 at 9:15 a.m. (Suggest removal)

$1 per hour- how long does it take to walk the bridge? never done it. When is the fishing pier gonna open? or better what services can be cut to eliminate the extra revenue. must be a lot of money involved in parking and mt pleasant needs it badly to go this extreme. sounds like they are about broke to do this. maybe a toll road on johnny dobbs would be a better idea. sorting the trash for beer cans would help. maybe cut some of the cost for power lunches by mt pleasant commissioners. changing light bulbs to 40 watts. just trying to help if they are that desperate for money.

Posted by PalmettoDP on October 8, 2008 at 9:33 a.m. (Suggest removal)

grainofsalt - I've also noticed several people walking cluelessly out in front of traffic on Patriots Point Blvd - some looking down at an ipod or typing a text message on a cell phone. Many folks seem to cross carefully, though.

Santos has a point because that area was never intented to be parking for the bridge. It's just unfortunate that the town can't offer free parking for bridge walkers. Perhaps the plan for the park is a little too grandiose.

Posted by robbybobby on October 8, 2008 at 9:35 a.m. (Suggest removal)

let's see - people drive their cars from somewhere to park so they can walk across the bridge. Why not cut out the middle man and just walk from wherever somewhere is?

Posted by HighDef on October 8, 2008 at 9:40 a.m. (Suggest removal)

early- take your ADD drugs before you read the paper in the morning, it will help you stay focused through the day while posting !

Posted by Neponset on October 8, 2008 at 10:22 a.m. (Suggest removal)

This is off topic, but is relative to these forums. The counters for each article often show a different number of comments on the summery page and when the article is opened up to read the comments - have others noticed this or do I have a problem. I am thinking about emailing P&C Crawford, since I am in and out of the P&C a number of times a day and I find the counters useful.

Posted by MSB on October 8, 2008 at 10:32 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I've come to the conclusion, from reading these comments daily, that if most of you people don't have something to bitch about, you will manufacture it.

$1 for parking?? GIVE ME A FREAKING BREAK!!

I'm sure that $1 is going to cause some of you to stop walking the bridge. GOOD!! Stay your asses out of Mt.Pleasant in the first place. You want to walk the bridge?? Park in Charleston.....and either get mugged or have your car broken into.

Now, complain about something that really matters......like all these yankee idiots moving into the area.

I know....we could allow natives to key any yankee car parked along the roadside.....and if they really want a laugh.....put a booth at the top of the bridge....charge a fee for natives to throw Yankee newcomers off the bridge as they walk by. Then the Town can impound and sell the cars left by the dead yankees.

Posted by commonsence on October 8, 2008 at 10:36 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I agree with Santos on this one. How many of you actually drive this road between 4-8 weeknights. Hundreds of cars pass through this area on their way to drop off kids for soccer games, college events, etc. and it is very congested. Roadside parking should be banned there regardless. Thomas...yes anything could happen so why not just wait until someone is struck and then we can be outraged that nothing was done beforehand. Nobody likes more fees but if you are going to take advantage of the amenities of the town, be prepared to pay a nominal fee for it's upkeep. Next issue please...

Posted by Neponset on October 8, 2008 at 10:39 a.m. (Suggest removal)

MSB
If you got rid of the Yankees, there would hardly be anyone left in Mt. P.

Posted by Larz13 on October 8, 2008 at 10:53 a.m. (Suggest removal)

MSB,

Get over it complaining about Yankees, we have ALREADY taken over. Go move to Jedburg and be with your own.

Posted by retiredafrider on October 8, 2008 at 11:56 a.m. (Suggest removal)

For singleroni, it took me about 45 minutes at a fairly brisk pace to walk from Patriots Point Blvd near the Circle K to the end on the Charleston side. I had an appointment in Mt. Pleasant and parked there to enjoy the walk over and have lunch with my wife who works near East Bay and Broad St. I might have been a bit later for lunch had I walked about .8 extra mile each way from Whole Foods and crossed a couple of highly trafficked roads (Oops, another safety issue..."could" be hit by someone running a light while texting) as suggested by grainofsalt, and it really hadn't crossed my mind to park a longer distance away since at the time, there was plenty of free parking available.

For Robbybobby, walking from Summerville would be a little far for me. Didn't all taxpayers have to contribute in some way to help build the bridge? It's a shame some are so narrow minded to think only those who live close enough to walk/run/bike to it should be able to enjoy the view. $1 an hour to park would have cost me at least $3 that day. Still cheaper than most downtown Charleston parking, but more than parking where it's still free downtown (I hate to give up that location to all who may not know where they can park and walk a bit...otherwise I won't be able to find space there!)

My compromise suggestion is how about just $1 to park at the new park per day or $20 annually. Period. Enjoy the day, enjoy the park, enjoy the bridge views. As Hard Rock Park learned, you can charge so much no one will visit.

Posted by DanniD on October 8, 2008 at 12:52 p.m. (Suggest removal)

MSB...get over it. What do Yankees do that has you in such a hissy?

Posted by Neponset on October 8, 2008 at 1:15 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Ok, I park at this new water front park (and I still have a little of that hard “a” Boston accent on the word "park"), and I have two choices: 1. I go up Wingo and taking my life in my hands, I cross umteen lanes of traffic to get to the bridge walk way or 2. I head south under the bridge and loop east to get to the bridge walk way. For you expert bridge walkers which course is the best, shortest and how far is it?

Posted by southbel on October 8, 2008 at 3:16 p.m. (Suggest removal)

I guess this is what I don't understand. Mount Pleasant is moving forward on plan after plan to revitalize Coleman, the Shem Creek purchase and eventual park built there, this quite grandiose plan for this park complete with convention center, and yet they are now saying they want to either increase taxes or our utility franchise fee. In addition, they are saying that they must charge us $1 an hour to pay for the maintenance of the parking lot.

Well, I guess, given that the town has claimed they are not getting the same amount of revenue, why are continuing with these very expensive projects? I, like anyone else, really enjoy the benefits of the having these new parks and better looking street scapes, but given the current economic climate, I am willing to forgo some of them in favor of not passing on the cost of these non-vital programs to the taxpayers. I guess I am just asking for some fiscal conservativeness here. I think, perhaps, that is the root of the issue with the $1 per hour for parking more than the fee itself.

If the town were already practicing true fiscal conservativeness and THEN were asking for this fee, I would be inclined to support it, but alas, this is not the case. Let's look first at non-vital programs that could be delayed before passing on more costs to the taxpayers.

Posted by HighDef on October 8, 2008 at 3:33 p.m. (Suggest removal)

haha Early, gay, porn and crack all in one post. what med's did the doc's put you on that made you so squirly ?
I've had no problem parking on the Charleston side, granted the city should do more to provide more public parking. It seems safe to me. Maybe it's from growing up in a big city like Boston that makes this seem so small and simple to figure out ? It's time for the native's that hang on to gun's and religion to head to O'berg and Jedberg...be with real southern folk not us evil, yankee criminals that have overrun Chucktown !

Posted by grainofsalt on October 8, 2008 at 4:39 p.m. (Suggest removal)

AFRider - I hear you - point taken.

But it's these attitudes of "why should I pay to park" and "why are we being deprived of this free parking" that baffle me. Fact is, the side of Patriots Point Blvd. is not a parking lot, nor was it ever intended to be, especially on a daily basis.

The Town is not suggesting this idea in order to make money. They're trying to solve a problem. All those people parking on Patriots Point Blvd is a PROBLEM. Nothing more sinister than that, cynics. I won't give the Town too much benefit of the doubt, but what they suggest is logical. There is no evil plan in this.

If they can manage to squeeze in a parking lot for bridge walkers in the new waterfront park (or somewhere else nearby), it solves the problem. But it will cost to build it and maintain it. And more than just MP taxpayers will use it. So why shouldn't it cost a meager amount for those who park there?

Again, you're not being asked to pay to walk. You can park for free on the Charleston side all you want. If you don't wish to do that, then a $1 parking lot on this side is your alternative. Take it or leave it. Being able to park on a highly trafficked roadway next to the bridge is no taxpayer "right."

Posted by grainofsalt on October 8, 2008 at 5:40 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Thomas, you're right. We paid for the bridge. And we could certainly discuss abuses of tax dollars. We'd probably agree about a great many instances of that by the Town, the State and the Federal governments.

But I don't get your point. Because we taxpayers paid for the bridge, we should be allowed to park anywhere we want along a well-trafficked thoroughfare in order to walk upon it?

Posted by Neponset on October 8, 2008 at 6:14 p.m. (Suggest removal)

People who live in suburbia are not accustomed to paying for parking and I think that is the real reason for all the resistance here. It looks like your leaders want to ensure that the “surface” parking lot gets max. utilization and yields max. revenue to support this grand park - it doesn’t take 400K to maintain a simple parking lot, especially if you eliminate the parking attendants and management company.

Posted by Rebel_Yell on October 8, 2008 at 7:45 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Amendment 1: Hotties park for free.