Dear Council Members,
It was an interesting council meeting last night. I want to thank Betsy Nash for coming prepared with her thoughts on what the study should include. It would be helpful to add to the study the actual impact on downtown during the construction. It was mentioned that new residents will bring a lot of business to the downtown businesses. How many of the existing businesses will actually survive a 2+ year construction site? Many businesses have entrances on the parking lots and many other who rely on the parking spaces for their customers. What is the reality of customers frequenting their businesses, having to walk through a dangerous construction zone to get to their stores and offices? Is the council thinking that there will be a surplus of new businesses moving in when the construction is done to take the place of those that can’t survive the construction? Who’s going to buy paint at Grey’s if they have to carry gallons of paint, walk through a construction zone and park across town? How will people get to J.Hilburn, Aida’s, Chantal’s, Lisa DeNeffe Photography, Afterwards, the Dance Studio, Block Advisors and others like these whose only entrance is in the construction zone? Is there compensation set aside for the loss of business to the downtown business owners and building owners? It sounds like the police, schools and fire departments do not have the infrastructure for the amount of new buildings and residents, but that never comes into these conversations. Will these concerns be addressed in the study? Thanks for your time.
Trish Mitchell
650-888-2480
