Downtown parking in Newmarket could become more difficult in the next few months due to a delay in converting the tennis courts into parking spaces.
Ward 5 Councillor Bob Kwapis told the Main Street BIA Aug. 2 that the conversion would be stalled due to delay with the new tennis facility coming to the Shining Hill development property. Soft soil conditions on the build site have prompted the developers and town staff to push that project from the fall to the spring so the pavement can set.
That means additional parking will not be in place for the opening of the Postmark Hotel on Main Street in the fall. But Kwapis said the town is working on alternatives.
“The soil in the area is too soft, and it will crack the pavement. Therefore, what they need to do is wait for the winter and early spring,” Kwapis said. “It’s unfortunate. It’s something that wasn’t anticipated."
With the Postmark Hotel expected to bring increased traffic downtown, the town has planned to convert the tennis courts to add at least 100 spaces to the parking lot. Meanwhile, tennis players are set to get a new tennis facility in the southwest corner of town on the Shining Hill lands. But the municipality has assured them that the parking lot conversion would not occur until that new facility is ready.
Kwapis said the town and Postmark are working together to figure out what to do.
“We’re going to have to deal with a few months through the wintertime of making sure any kind of impact from the hotel is accommodated, and it’s fair to the BIA, the downtown businesses, as well as the Postmark,” Kwapis said.
BIA Chair Tom Hempen said he hopes the organization can be involved as the town seeks other parking alternatives. He suggested Church Street is wide enough to be an option.
“Get that low-hanging fruit and find those parking spots,” he said. “We are in need now, I think, with the great demand of the hotel opening and the street becoming stronger."
