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Several Give Opinions On City Parking
Friday, 22 May 1953

[Articles transcibed from the official city newspaper in Woods County. The frontpage headlines were dated Wednesday, May 22, 1953, Vol. 54, Iss. 211, Alva, Oklahoma.]

Opinions both pro and con were expressed vehemently in Alva Friday concerning the center parking, but still the center land was "almost" vacant. However, one car was spotted in the center parking area in the 400 block on College Ave. Later in the day a small slip of paper was also spotted under the windshield wiper of the same car.

Reaction to the city council's abolishment of all center parking in Alva was varied Friday. However, a majority of those which a reporter was able to contact expressed opposition to the move. many those who opposed the action of the council said they believe the council should have considered adopting some system of providing new parking facilities before eliminating the center parking.

The new ordinance was ineffect today.

There were some merchants contacted who favored the move, but in many of these reactions they expressed disfavor of the hastiness of the council in the elimination of center parking and without conferring with merchants and others concerning some sort of a substitute.

The opinions that follow are in no way to be construed as a cross-section of the entire reaction of the residents of Alva.

Here area few personal opinions on the question:

John Meyers -- "I am opposed to abolishing the center parking system because we already had a shortage of parking space and now.... (this transcriber did not get all of meyer's reply copied from microfilm.)

Brette M. Tanner -- "I don't believe it was necessary to abolish the center parking so abruptly without consideration of providing a substitute. The matter had been discussed many times by different councils but it seems to me that a solution should have been in order to launch at the same time as the action was taken to eliminate the center parking.

Milford Rice -- "I favor the move to abolishing the center parking system because it has been a traffic hazard and a dangerous condition existed in case of a fire in some place of business on the square."

Marion Monfort -- "I am deposed to the council's action. ..... a traffic hazard. I can see none so long as we continue to regulate the speed of cars on the square at the slow limit of 15 miles per hour."

Hollis Warrick -- "I think the merchants should have been consulted before the council took the action. I believe it was done too quick and is unfair to the merchants. I think the council should have gotten an expression from the merchants before taking such drastic action."

Neil Blumberg -- "It looks to me like the council got the cart before the horse. I think they should have arranged for additional parking space before they eliminated center parking. I can tell yo in about a week how the action is going to affect us around the hotel."

Bob Reneau -- "I am ready to concede that the center parking provided a traffic congestion during a smallpart of time in a week, but I don't believe it was right for the council to take the action it did without first arriving at some solution to our parking problem."

Ollie Smithson -- "I'm against the elimination of center parking just like I'm opposed to parking meters. The parking meters forced business to go to other towns and this move will force more customers to go elsewhere."

S. B. Appleman -- "My first reaction was that it was a pretty good idea. Perhaps it was done rather hastily without advance notice. I wonder where the people are going to park their cars, but we are no different from other town of our size and they are getting along without center parking. And likely, it will be the best thing."

Perry Irons -- "I believe the action of the council was too fast. I think more consideration should have been given, especially to provide other parking facilities. I believe the post office street could be widened and a new street made on the west side of the courthouse to provide additional parking spaces. I appreciate the fact that the elimination of center parking should be done but new facilities should have been provided at the same time."

Mrs. Paul Wiebener -- "Our customers have expressed themselves today as opposing the move. I believe some other means of taking care of the needed parking space should have been provided first before eliminating center parking. One woman told us today that she lived just as close to Waynoka as to Alva and they could go there to shop."

John Wrenchey, Jett's -- "I believe a parking system could be planned here to give us the space needed but this should ahve been done before the center parking was removed."

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