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City takes aim at Courthouse Square parking abuses
With two sides of Putnam County Courthouse Square still closed for ongoing U.S. 231 construction, parking is at more of a premium than ever in downtown Greencastle.
Mayor Lynda Dunbar is taking aim at Putnam County Courthouse employees abusing the right to park on the square. The Putnam County Commissioners have no intent of standing in her way.
“Our very favorite discussion is parking downtown,” Dunbar said with a smile as she opened her comments during the Tuesday meeting of the commissioners.
Dunbar noted how the city earlier this year changed its parking ordinance for downtown spaces from two hours to three hours. This was in response to requests from senior citizens who found the two-hour window did not allow the desired time to enjoy coffee and a card game or two at the Putnam County Senior Center on Franklin Street.
The unintended consequence was more courthouse employees parking in the city’s three-hour spaces, which are on all sides of the square and one block in each direction.
“Now that we’ve extended it to three hours, we have a record number of courthouse employees parking on the square because they only have to move their cars two or three times rather than four,” Dunbar said.
The mayor estimated that between 20 and 30 courthouse employees are utilizing these spaces on a daily basis.
This flies in the face of directives from the Putnam County Commissioners, who have repeatedly tried to address the issue and require that employees park in one of several free parking lots no more than a block from the square.
“We send out a memo every stinkin’ year,” Commissioner Rick Woodall said. “I still don’t know why we can’t make it a condition of employment.”
County Attorney Jim Ensley countered that the county can make it a condition of employment and put it in the handbook. However, such measures only go so far if the elected officials in certain offices will not enforce them.
“You have to task the elected officials. We talk about this every two or three years,” Ensley said. “I’ve been in the Prosecutor’s Office for 15 years. On the first day, my boss (Tim Bookwalter) said, ‘Don’t park on the square.’ Guess what? I don’t park on the square.”
This is evidently not the case in some other offices.
The commissioners can enforce compliance when it comes to departments with appointed department heads. Those under the authority of other elected officials, though, are out of the commissioners’ hands when it comes to discipline.
While the city cannot address these peculiarities of county government, Dunbar has a plan for parking moving forward.
She said that under the former city administration, a number of courthouse employees were granted permission to park on the square for medical reasons. Unfortunately, Dunbar said she has no definitive list, and there were no expiration dates put on these passes.
“I am throwing that out the window, wherever it may be,” Dunbar said.
She further asked that the commissioners send out a blanket email to all courthouse employees noting that the former parking privileges have been revoked.
“I don’t know how to make notification because I don’t know who they are,” Dunbar said.
However, those who genuinely need a parking waiver may reapply.
“We will approve it, but we will have a start and end date. And it needs to be somebody who really, really needs it,” Dunbar said.
Those county employees wishing for specialized parking privileges may apply by contacting Aubree Hiatt, Dunbar’s executive assistant, at 765-848-1515 or ahiatt@cityofgreencastle.com.
“We’re probably going to be pretty selective on who gets them and who doesn’t,” Dunbar said. “I think they probably think, ‘Oh, I have a free pass’ because there was never a start and end date.”
“I imagine it’s been pretty abused,” Commissioner David Berry said.
Dunbar said two passes have been issued and both were for extreme cases.
Woodall had further questions, though.
“My question is, if I’m a business owner and I have an issue, can I apply?” Woodall asked.
“No,” Dunbar replied.
“Then why do we do something special for them (courthouse employees)” Woodall countered.
“Because we’ve always done it,” Dunbar said.
The mayor offered that there are nearby lots, though some are less utilized because they are downhill, such as the lot behind the Greencastle Moose Lodge.
Dunbar said that with the city’s UTV ordinance in place, perhaps employees could be shuttled the block from their parking lots to the courthouse. She even said that some places could be designated as county employee parking only.
She also said that when it snows, a city worker will be downtown to ensure that sidewalks are clear.
Ensley noted that the interlocal agreement between the city and county likely needs to be updated, as the county had to grant the city enforcement powers for the inner spaces of the square, as they are technically on county property. He also noted that in the old agreement, five spaces were reserved for county employees.
Dunbar said that Greencastle Police Parking Enforcement Officer Heather Fauber has noted that citizens coming to the courthouse to do business have a tough time finding spaces, let alone those patronizing area businesses.
“The businesses are having a hard enough time with all the loveliness out here,” Dunbar said, indicating the ongoing construction, “but if we could open up a few spots for their patrons, that would be great.”
Based on their reactions, the city will get no pushback from county leaders in this matter.