To the editor:

As a manager of a downtown business, it infuriates me that there seems to be no opposition to proposed increases in downtown parking fines, accompanied by decreases in parking time restrictions. Consider the lip service consistently given to downtown, in particular the celebration of downtown as some integral heart of our community. Let me ask this: Where else in Lawrence does one shop and dine and incur a parking charge for doing so? My tax dollars contributed to the city’s outlay of $1.6 million to build turn lanes at 31st and Iowa to accommodate big box stores like Best Buy and Home Depot. No one pays to park at those businesses.

The shift from 2-hour parking to 1.5-hour parking is particularly galling. Clearly, downtown Lawrence is a mixed-use area. The optimal expectation is that of customers dining and shopping, even lingering in our ambiance. Wow, that’s a lot of fun if you’re running to feed the meter or move your car in the middle of coffee. And trust me, with rare exceptions it is not the want for parking spaces that drives this initiative; 98 percent of the time there are plenty of spots downtown.

Charging for parking downtown is a cash cow and now that cash is dear the city is putting more pressure on the udders. There is no equity or justice to be found in this situation for the downtown merchant compared to other merchants across the city.

There, that’s my two cents, or should I say $3, worth.

Steve Wilson is from Lawrence.