Shoppers rejoice-parking near State Street will no longer require infinite patience or plenty of luck. A working group consisting of Madison developers, engineers, city employees and citizen stakeholders met Thursday evening to discuss the future of the Mid-State Street Parking & Mixed-Use Facility.
Construction of the six-story structure with a brick fa??ade is scheduled for February 2006 between Gorham and Gilman Streets, will house 50 condominiums and 63 private parking stalls in addition to multiple floors of public, short-term underground parking in place of Buckeye Lot. The building's erection is intended to coincide with the redesign of Lisa Link Peace Park and substantial development of State Street's 400 Block.
\Yes, it is going to be a mess for awhile, but it is going to be a mess for everyone,"" Project Developer Curt Brink of Statehouse West, LLC explained. Brink added that the proposed outdoor patio would add to the downtown visitor's experience and help revitalize Peace Park.
""You need eyes on a park, and you need people interacting,"" Brink said.
According to Brink, neighborhood residents protested original designs that had traffic exiting the ramp on Gilman Street; in response, the current proposal allows drivers to egress onto Gorman Street. Archie Nicolette, urban planner for the City of Madison, objected to the garage's pedestrian exit.
""When people are in the ramp, they are going to look for a street exit ... I think it's important to have a lot of comfort,"" Nicolette said.
Other members were worried building residents would occupy spots in short-term parking. Mike Schmidt, an engineer with project manager Arnold and O'Sheridan, offered several possible solutions, from separating private from public parking to key-card access.
""How do you handle short-term parking? Historically, it has been [with] meters,"" Schmidt said.
Ledell Zellers, representative of Capital Neighborhoods, Inc., feared the noise generated by the ramp's internal heating, ventilation and air conditioning would disturb locals.
""That noise problem is worse than firecrackers or ... parties going on at 3 a.m.,"" Zellers said. ""I don't think developers are sensitive enough to [noise]...it can be horrendous.""
Brink emphasized continued community input is necessary to accommodate all.
""We're trying to solve this,"" Brink said. ""We want to create downtown housing of great quality.\
