Neighbors - Am I making enemies?

I run a business in a high-end touristy/2nd home type area. My shop is at the end of the "Main drag" as it were. I am on the corner of the busiest street downtown, and a side street that is mainly "through traffic."

Parking downtown is at a premium. It's a source of constant debate. Last year, the city finally started leasing a lot that is caddy-corner to my shop; about a 30-60 second walk. This has helped to alleviate some of the strain.

Now, I have ONE parking spot in front of my shop (one way street, you park on the side of the street, parallel with the street (i.e., spots are not "angled.")

I have always parked on the "not-busy" side-street. The thought of parking in front of my own shop...or someone else's would never even cross my mind. Until recently, everyone around me did the same. Well, we have three new business (owners from 'up north') across the street, and one next door. Suddenly, everybody parks in front of everybody else's shops. For the 6 businesses down at this end of town, there are a whopping 6-7 parking spaces available on the main street.

Right now (11AM on the busiest day of the week,) every one of them is full, and will be all day.

I have politely asked a couple of the employees, and one of the business owners, when I caught them in the act "Hey, man, can you do me a favor and park on the side-street?"

All of them have obliged without complaint, but then done the same damned thing a week later.

PARTICULARLY in my business, customers are carrying large items in and out of the shop - so if they have to walk 50 yards carrying said big heavy object - they are less likely to do business at my shop.

Anyway, as I see it, there are two ways of handling this. I can A: Try to pop each person as they park out front, and explain to them why that's not good for ANYONE'S business/Talk to them and all of their employees in the shop during business hours. This seems like a big pain in the ass.

Or B: Write a very POLITE letter that explains why we, as business owners/employees, should leave as many convenient spots as possible for our customers. This is the easiest route, but may come off as a little bit "passive-aggressive," and I worry that I'd be making enemies with my new neighbors. Granted, I've met all of them, and aside from the folks next door (who usually park behind me anyway,) I don't really care for any of them, so maybe that's not an issue anyway. I just don't want to be the "HEY YOU KIDS, GET OFF MY LAWN" grumpy guy at the end of the street...but I am.

What say ye, oh wise GRM'ers?

PS: A "Parking reserved for" sign is not an option.

No matter what you do, it will be wrong to someone. Plus I doubt you will ever get out the inbred laziness in people.

Often in this type of "downtown-ish" storefront areas the best parking spots will have a time limit. Something reasonable like a 2 hr limit.
Is it possible to erect a street sign that looks like it came from the municipality that might read something like:

For the benefit of
CUSTOMERS
we ask
2 HOUR LIMIT

My point being that the sign is a kind suggestion but it also points out to the other owners who are the problem.

A sample that i quickly found but drop the violators and towing portion

I don't think the note idea is terrible. Anybody smart would understand it's a benefit to them to leave those spots available for customers.

jrw1621 wrote: Often in this type of "downtown-ish" storefront areas the best parking spots will have a time limit. Something reasonable like a 2 hr limit. Is it possible to erect a street sign that looks like it came from the municipality that might read something like: For the benefit of customers. we ask 2 HOUR LIMIT My point being that the sign is a kind suggestion but it also points out to the other owners who are the problem. A sample that i quickly found but drop the violators and towing portion

I will suggest this to the city. I believe it will fall on deaf ears, as "no action is the action that keeps people from raising a stink" is their modus operandi. But I will give it a shot. Great suggestion! ANY sign now has to be permitted by the city, as people got crazy with the disposable signs, and some guy wanted to put this ridiculous billboard downtown.

Rather than just directly ask the city, is there a area chamber of commerce or store owners group that you can organize to bring this benefit to more than just yourself.

jrw1621 wrote: Rather than just directly ask the city, is there a area chamber of commerce or store owners group that you can organize to bring this benefit to more than just yourself.

Yes. We have a Downtown Business Association. The problem is (rolleyes) the business owners are split on the issue. Some say "Well I'm not WALKING to my shop. That's ridiculous!" The business owners ARE the problem.

"March 24, 2012

For the attention of our neighbors, fellow business owners, and their employees

Dear Neighbors:

Recently, business owners and employees on this end of town have begun parking on Main Street. At the time of my writing this, almost every parking spot from (shop down the way) down to the Stop Sign is occupied by either a business owner or employee. This means that anyone wishing to do business at this end of the street is forced to park on (side street) or in the Municipal Lot next to the gym.

Please, as a courtesy to your neighbors, and to the customers that keep our businesses alive, park either on (side street), or in the Municipal Lot. Particularly in our business, our customers are often having to unload and load large, heavy items, and if there are no spaces available on Main Street, they will simply not do business with us that day.

PLEASE FEEL FREE to park on the side of our building on (side street). When I pulled in at 9 o’clock this morning, every spot on Mountain Street was open. Also keep in mind that the spots on the North side of (side street) are available.

I am writing a letter (rather than addressing this matter personally with each business owner,) only out of convenience. If you’d like to discuss the idea of leaving parking spots on Main St. open for our customers, please give me a call at xxx-xxxx, or come by the shop near the end of the day, and I’ll be happy to talk face-to-face.

Thanks, and best wishes to you all for another prosperous year in (our town)!"

Cool?

ask the business owners, not the employees. Most employees will care very little, unless their employer hammers them.

They'll care when they get 4-tires worth of roofing nails!!! Joking. Must. Resist.

I like it.

jrw1621 wrote: I like it.

Polite letter or roofing nails?

The roofing nails will just keep the cars there longer (since they will be immobile)

Even the big stores like Target which have nearly unlimited parking force the employees into the cheap seats and leave the good spots up front for the customers. Share that same logic with the owners.

Get a couple cheap hand cart/trucks and put them near the front door and help people get E36 M3 to their cars. If you are really cheap - Lowes has them strewn all over that look free for the taking :)

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: Get a couple cheap hand cart/trucks and put them near the front door and help people get E36 M3 to their cars. If you are really cheap - Lowes has them strewn all over that look free for the taking :)

I always carry my work out to people's cars. It's people having to cart E36 M3 (not to mention their butts) halfway across town from their car to my shop for no reason other than shop owners' laziness that's the issue.

Buy some cones at home depot and put them in your spot at night and remove them after the other business owners have found their parking spot for the day.

I like the letter but it need more cuss words.

EastCoastMojo wrote: Buy some cones at home depot and put them in your spot at night and remove them after the other business owners have found their parking spot for the day.

And if anyone asks about the cones, feign ignorance.

Win-win!

I would take the scorched earth approach and get yourself a rusted out, straight piped, oil leaking early 80s crew cab dually with one fender ripped off. Hook it to a 30ft enclosed trailer. Park it in front of ALL your neighboring businesses at once!

Make the alderman take care of it. It is their job to make sure business owners and customers are happy in their ward. THEY should write a letter so THEY can take care of those who bitch.

You guys are encouraging my natural instincts. We'll try the letter first. Then it's twin 30' trailers with my logo on the sides time. I love it by the way.

poopshovel wrote: The business owners ARE the problem.

To you.

This seems stupid simple to me if I were a business owner with a storefront. I say write the letter as a kind of proposal, suggesting that the business in the area commit to having business employees park on the side street for the benefit of customer convenience and access. Keep it simple, keep it short, keep it general. Don't get wordy, don't give a bunch of reasoning, include your contact info for suggestions, ideas, and feedback (such as putting up signage, or whatever). Don't assert authority, don't insist, don't dictate, just propose. If that doesn't get any results, consider contacting the downtown business association/group for assistance with the idea.

EastCoastMojo wrote: I like the letter but it need more cuss words.

If I wasn't already berkeleying married...

Here's what you do to smarten up the business owners.

Figure out how long on average that your customers are spending in your store.

The figure out, on average, how much they spent.

Then figure out how much $$$ per day that works out to.

This will show you how much revenue that parking space generates.

Then show the other business owners how much THEY are potentially losing by those customers not coming into their place of business because the business owner is taking up the only parking space.

Sales $$$ vs walking 50 feet twice a day will probably smarten them up. If it doesn't they deserve to go out of business.

Shawn