Pavement is not the answer
The city of Connellsville recently made downtown parking lots free for shoppers. That move has failed to fill the sidewalks of Crawford Avenue or even the parking lots for that matter. So it makes little sense for Connellsville City Council to pave a prime lot just to give two bordering businesses door-side parking for customers. It’s not parking spaces that are lacking in downtown Connellsville. It’s stores. Council should do everything within its power to keep those merchants it has in the city and to court new retail outlets. Connellsville took the first step in helping existing businesses by offering free parking.
Now Councilman Bruce Jaynes proposes that the city, at its expense, pave the gravel lot that once supported the Troutman Building. Since the city demolished the vacant department store that served in recent years as a breeding ground for pigeons it has been unable to sell the cleared lot for potential development.
The mayor and council should review why it hasn’t sold. During that recap, council should note that it could have turned the property over sometime ago to one of three willing bidders. But politics and personal preferences got in the way of a simple real estate transaction.
Connellsville also could have unloaded the parcel during the time it was listed with a real estate agency, if council had simply abandoned the notion that it can control a potential owner. Any prospective buyers after getting past the $30,000 asking price (this might be a bit steep for a struggling downtown lot) must then tackle restrictions that require them to build within one year of closing.
Further, council must approve of the building down to the finest of details and even requiring that its facade be one of stone or brick.
This would make some sense if Connellsville had a control ordinance that makes similar demands on all downtown properties. It doesn’t. Which makes these restrictions seem all the more out of place.
Before turning the property into a parking lot, the mayor and council can ease the restrictions and try once more to add stores not empty spaces to its downtown.