Ad Hoc Committee to Deal with Parking Problems in Mahopac
While a number of businesses have recently opened in Mahopac, town officials are concerned that the limited amount of public parking could hinder the community’s growth.
“We have a resurgence of business activity in downtown Mahopac; our empty storefronts are filling up, we have some new restaurants. The one thing that we don’t have is a true municipal parking lot,” said Town Supervisor Ken Schmitt at the Aug. 18 town board meeting. “The one thing were sorely need in Mahopac is parking.”
It is a problem with a limited number of answers.
“We probably hear every day from our residents and business owners that we need to find solutions to deal with that,” said Schmitt.
To deal with issue Schmitt is co-chairing a committee with Councilman Frank Lombardi to explore opportunities in the town. The committee will include business owners and elected officials.
Mahopac’s downtown is made up of mostly privately owned land. The town-owned parcel was transformed into The Mahopac Chamber Community Park which has parking room for six vehicles 10 years ago.
“When the past administration wanted to create this park I told them to make it parking,” said Dave Nichols, who owns several properties in the downtown. “They said that the park would only be for passive usage, but it has become the most popular park we have. It hosts the tree lighting and the street fair.”
In 2010, Putnam County built a municipal parking lot on the corner of Route 6 and Mt. Hope Road, which remains under-utilized in Mahopac. The lot, which is a quarter-of-a-mile away from the juncture of Route 6 and Route 6N, cost over a million dollars to build and is considered a folly by Country Executive MaryEllen Odell.
“That parking lot should never have been built,” said Odell. who voted against building the parking lot while she served on the legislature.
Schmitt reached out to state Senator Greg Ball for help with getting money from Albany to build a new parking lot.
Ball encouraged Schmitt to prepare a proposal now that can be looked at on paper so it could be considered for the next round of bullet grants.
“That is exactly the kind of project that New York State should be spending money,” said Ball. “It helps create jobs and develop the downtown.”
Ball suggested having a formal request ready for January. Schmitt said the committee would be starting work over the next few weeks.
Adam has worked in the local news industry for the past two decades in Westchester County and the broader Hudson Valley. Read more from Adam’s author bio here.
