Fall 2020 - 1736 Magazine

Curb appeal
PARKING SPACES SET ASIDE FOR DOWNTOWN BUSINESS’ TAKEOUT ORDERS
By DAMON CLINE
A downtown parking-management plan
has been put on the backburner because of
the COVID-19 pandemic, but city officials
recently enacted a stopgap measure to
help accommodate the growing number
of restaurant patrons opting for takeout
orders amid coronavirus-related dining
restrictions.
In October the city converted 10 downtown
parking spaces, primarily clustered
in the Broad Street dining district between
the 900 and 1200 blocks, to 30-minute
zones so delivery drivers and takeout
customers can more conveniently pick up
food.
A “windshield” survey of 22 downtown
eateries conducted over the summer by the
Augusta Downtown Development Authority
revealed 71% of respondents said they
intend to continue curbside pickup service
for the next several months.
“We asked if their (takeout) customers
were having problems finding a place to
park, and the overwhelming answer was
‘yes,’” Woodard said. “We didn’t have
anyone who said they didn’t want the
signs.”
As with restaurants nationwide, eateries
in downtown Augusta have seen an
increasing number of orders switch from
dine-in to takeout.
“I think it’s a good idea,” said Luanne
Hildebrandt, owner of the Hildebrandt’s
delicatessen at Sixth and Ellis streets.
“Business is beginning to come back
inside, but I still have a lot of people who
definitely want to do curbside only.”
The conversion of previously designated
two-hour spaces was done strategically
to enable multiple restaurants to use a
single space. The 30-minute space in the
500 block, for example, could be used
by Hildebrant’s as well as Luigi’s and
Sports Center nearby. The space in the
1000 block could be used by Pineapple
Ink Tavern, Southern Salad, Soy Noodle
House and Whiskey Bar Kitchen.
Havird Usry, co-owner of Broad Street’s
Southern Salad restaurant and a board
member of the Georgia Restaurant Association,
said his eatery’s pick-up orders
have “increased significantly” this year.
“It’s up 50% as far as our sales go,” Usry
said. “It’s probably 30 to 35% of our daily
sales, so I think we’ll benefit from it.”
Augusta Traffic Engineer John Ussery
said city ordinances prohibit public spaces
from being designated to a specific business,
but the intent of the short-term parking
spots is to encourage rapid turnover for
customers and delivery drivers picking up
orders made via telephone and internet.
He said businesses will be able to place
sandwich boards near the signs to direct
customers to the spaces.
“We just wanted to give them a way to
indicate with something that is not permanent
that this is the preferred spot to pick
up food at various restaurants,” Ussery
said. “We’re hoping for cooperation from
the public, and I think once people get used
to the idea of what (the spaces) are there
for, they will be fine.”
The Augusta Commission was briefed
on the space-conversion plan before it was
implemented, but a vote was not required
because the city’s existing ordinances – as
well as state and federal transportation
manuals – already authorize cities to make
such changes.
Parking enforcement in the 30-minute
zones, like other public spaces in downtown,
falls under the purview of the
Richmond County Sheriff’s Office. Ussery
said the spaces can be used by anyone for
any purpose so long as the 30-minute limit
is observed.
Figures from the DDA state that a
downtown parking space generates anywhere
from $150 to $300 in retail sales for
downtown businesses daily. Woodard said
the spaces are crucial to ensure downtown
restaurants – most of which are operating
at 50% capacity – can survive the COVID-
19 pandemic.
“We are still in uncertain times, and we
want to do everything we can to keep our
small businesses up and running to turn
some sort of profit during this pandemic,”
she said. “If people can’t find a spot to get
curbside pickup, then they’re going to go
someplace else.”
New 30-minute parking signs installed near restaurants
downtown, such as this one near Whiskey Bar Kitchen,
are intended to help people pick up to-go orders quickly.
[MICHAEL HOLAHAN/THE AUGUSTA CHRONICLE]
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