In today’s Warsaw Traffic Commission meeting, the topic of possibly banning on-street parking for most of Market Street topped the discussion, but only one member of the public was in attendance to voice a concern.

Diane Wulliman said, that while off-street parking is not an issue for her, it is for others who reside on Market Street. “I’m not sure doing away with parking is worth a bike lane,” she noted. “Are there even any numbers for how many people used the bike lane last year? I just don’t think it’s a good enough reason.” (See related story)

Although the commission had no numbers to provide Wulliman, Warsaw Mayor Joe Thallemer said, “It’s not so much of a bicycle issue as it is a geometry issue. There’s a challenge there strictly from a geometry standpoint that the road just isn’t wide enough.”

City assistant planner Tim Dombrosky also added, “This discussion helps [bring awareness] because something is going to change in the long run. … It’s not wide enough for three lanes of anything.”

Market Street is the main artery for the Warsaw+Winona Walk+Bike plan to institute bicycle and pedestrian lanes, but again, Thallemer said, “Widening of that road was considered before and didn’t have much to do with bikes. If this happens it doesn’t mean a bike lane automatically fits there.”

In today’s meeting, Lt. Kip Shuter, head of the commission, noted Market Street is only 25 feet wide. If on-street parking continues, with the addition of the proposed bike lane, the road would be reduced to 9 feet for each motor vehicle lane. “That makes for really narrow lanes and the city ordinance says streets need to be a minimum of 18 feet wide,” Shuter explained.

Both commission members, Thallemer and even Wulliman did agree in today’s meeting that the road is too narrow and vehicles parked along Market Street are often sideswiped. “There’s a few missing side mirrors,” Thallemer said, noting that one resident he spoke with who is against eliminating on-street parking, also admitted that damages are a common occurrence.

Shuter said recent studies of the area also show that the issue would not affect the masses. “The most vehicles ever counted that were parked on Market Street overnight was 11,” he said.

But Wulliman disagreed noting she sees a higher average of vehicles commonly parked along Market Street because several properties do not have other options. “And they have company and the company parks on the street,” she added.

Dombrosky insisted, “Everyone has access to parking or alley access.” Still, traffic commission member Cindy Dobbins didn’t necessarily agree. She explained, “There’s one house that is fenced in, and some people have no place to park without putting in some expense.”

The concern of how much traffic is actually utilizing Market Street was another point of discussion. Member Mike Klondaris asked if it was considered a main arterial street, to which Dombrosky noted it is actually a local urban collector street. A collector street is not considered a main artery for traffic, but does collect traffic from other streets and feeds it into main roads.

Member Mike Klondaris also expressed concerns with traffic speeds if the on-street parking was omitted. “Isn’t (on-street parking) sort of a traffic calming ideal? If you make the lanes wider, would that cause people to drive faster,” he asked.

While the commission members did agree with Klondaris, the matter all came back to the same problems: Market Street does not fit current standards; it is too narrow for traffic, parking and a bike/pedestrian lane; and in it its current format would not qualify for federal funding to help with resurfacing.

The current proposal calls for on-street parking from Wood Street on the west to Argonne Road on the east to be eliminated.

The matter will again be discussed at the Warsaw Traffic Commission’s Wednesday, April 3, meeting. The meeting will be at 1 p.m. but the location will be announced at a later date.

Even if the Warsaw Traffic Commission approves the parking ban, the final decision rests with the Warsaw Common Council.