The growing popularity of Turlock's downtown is a boon to the economy and increases the quality of life for residents, however, finding a place to park in the downtown area is becoming increasingly difficult.

A parking solution is in the works as the Turlock City Council contracted with TJKM Transportation Consultants in December to develop a Downtown Parking Plan. The consultants have been gathering data over the past five months on the current parking situation in the downtown area and are now hoping to gather public input on possible parking options through a workshop set for 6 p.m. Monday at City Hall.

“We want to hear from business owners, patrons and the community about their perspectives on downtown parking,” said Mayor Gary Soiseth. “Community input is a critical part of every effort to move the community forward."

The workshop will include a presentation on the results from parking data collection and the online community survey. Options for parking solutions will also be presented and discussed.

While the plan is still being developed, City of Turlock Senior Planner Katie Quintero said initial survey results have found that people don't want to have to pay to park in the downtown area and they don't want to have to walk far to reach their destination.

While 60 percent of those surveyed said they felt there is an issue with parking in the downtown, a majority said that within circling the block a couple of times they have been able to find a nearby parking spot, according to Quintero.

The downtown area is a roughly 160 acre area with core commercial area of approximately 90 acres with residential, civic and heavy commercial uses at the periphery. The study will look at a comprehensive approach to addressing current and future parking in all of the downtown areas where parking is a constraint to ensure the continued success and investment in the downtown.

TJKM will survey the existing parking conditions and determine the current parking demand, as well as determine the peak demand for weekday and weekend parking.

TJKM will use the General Plan growth projections with a 2032 planning horizon to make assumptions about future growth and development in the downtown area and will determine how the parking demand will change as this growth occurs. The plan will contain recommendations on the parking improvements that should be made over time as projected development occurs as well.

Additional information on the project can be found at: http://www.tjkm.com/projects/turlock.html.

The final report is slated for presentation before the City Council by summer.