Picton BIA seeks free parking for remainder of 2020

A request to continue free parking downtown Picton for the remainder of the year will come before council Tuesday at its virtual meeting.

Sarah Doiron, Picton BIA manager, notes in her deputation that parking surveys had been under way before the COVID-19 pandemic to seek ways to address concerns.

“Now we are operating very differently, and businesses are doing everything they can to recover from the closures mandated by the government,” she states. “It is imperative that we remove any barriers customers may perceive between themselves and supporting local business.”

She notes BIA members were appreciative free parking was extended from March 31 to June 1, quoting a member who stated “shopping is a habit and we need to encourage shoppers to come back… Free parking creates good will and helps businesses rebuild after all they have lost during the pandemic shut down. Main Street needs all the support it can get.”

Before paid parking would return in April 2021, Doiron suggests working on issues identified by the membership before the pandemic.

They include better signage, making free parking more obvious, addressing difficulty finding and using meters and concerns the meters don’t always print, or malfunction.