No carpark plan for Jetty Rd being considered to revitalise the Glenelg strip
EVERY carpark on Jetty Rd would be removed to make way for wider footpaths under a plan by Holdfast Bay Council. Here’s why — and what it wants to do. VOTE NOW
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EVERY carpark on Jetty Rd would be removed to make way for wider footpaths under a plan Holdfast Bay Council is considered to revitalise Glenelg’s main street.
Staff have shown a draft masterplan eliminating all 110 on-street parking spaces on Jetty Rd to the Jetty Road Mainstreet Committee, an internal council steering committee and key stakeholders in the shopping area.
Under the plan drawn up by consultants, Jetty Rd’s footpaths would be widened to allow more room for pedestrians and activities such as outdoor dining.
Jetty Road Mainstreet Committee chairman Mark Faulkner said eliminating parking was his “biggest issue” with the draft masterplan, which would also include increasing security for major events by installing bollards and building a multistorey carpark on Elizabeth St.
“Creating a wider footpath strolling environment is what the plan is looking at doing but I think there would be a bit of a backlash from some traders and the community if we took out parks,” Mr Faulkner said.
Other options are also being considered, including removing some parks in favour of wider footpaths.
The draft masterplan is due to go out to public consultation next month.
Mr Faulkner expected there would be a compromise to keep some carparks but remove others.
“It (the plan) is only just in its infant stages so nothing is set in concrete at all,” he said.
Mayor Stephen Patterson said “nothing has yet been decided” on the masterplan.
“The current configuration (of Jetty Rd) is constrained by its width and the mix of pedestrians, cars, bikes and trams,” Mr Patterson said.
“Widening the footpath along Jetty Rd, for instance, might allow for more space for pedestrians and accommodate additional outdoor dining in certain locations.”
There are another 3000 carparks in the suburb of Glenelg, including on streets and in paid and free public parking.
Traders experienced what it would be like to have no carparks on Jetty Rd during work to replace tram tracks from May 15 to Saturday.
Bay Newsagency owner Maple Tong said during the works, trade was down 50 per cent and she had to dip into her savings to pay costs such as rent.
Removing all parking was not a good idea, she said, because customers liked to park near shops if they wanted to buy something quickly, like a lottery ticket.
St Louis House of Fine Ice Cream and Dessert manager Tyson Kalz said widening Jetty Rd footpaths and getting rid of carparks would be a positive move if alternatives were provided.
He said trade was down 25 per cent when a fence was installed between his store and Moseley Square for the tram-track work.
“We’re paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for the view and it was blocked out,” Mr Kalz said.
The council and the State Government are sharing the master plan’s $150,000 cost.
