SWAMPSCOTT — Town officials are seeking public input on how to improve parking in the downtown Humphrey Street area.
The town is working with the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) to perform a parking analysis study of the area, from Monument Avenue to Commonwealth Avenue. The study started over the summer and is slated to be completed by the end of the year.
Peter Kane, director of community development, said the historic downtown Humphrey Street area was the town’s initial commercial district. He said the study area is basically the Humphrey Street Overlay District, which was created by Town Meeting in 2015, with an intent to encourage development there. He said the town is focused on developing a parking management plan for the district.
Planners from the MAPC have been collecting parking statistics in the district since the summer, which will continue into the fall. Kane said the MAPC conducted a site walk over the summer to study how long cars were parked on Humphrey Street and how many spaces were taken up.
As part of the study, the town is looking for feedback and information from residents, businesses and visitors, which will be solicited through a short survey.
Kane said the town has been focused on the revitalization of the downtown for more than 10 years — streetscape improvements have been made within the past year, including the installation of sidewalk extensions and bicycle lanes, with historic lighting still to come.
He said a number of planning projects have been performed and officials are moving forward on implementing steps recommended in those planning objectives. For example, Kane said the Downtown Community Visioning Study from 2012 with the MAPC identified a need for a parking study in the area.
Kane said there’s no real off-street parking on Humphrey Street, other than at a restaurant and church, which is restricted to their respective patrons. He said a new restaurant on the street with no off-street parking, referring to Mission on the Bay, has put more pressure on the parking situation.
“It brings in people to come and visit Swampscott, but we also want to make sure it’s not at the expense of the other businesses in the area,” Kane said.
Kane said Humphrey Street features many great dining establishments that are complemented by service, specialty goods, clothing and convenience shops. He said there’s been a change in the business mix on Humphrey Street, and each has a different parking need — the goal is to figure out what the issue is and figure out how to go about solving that.
In addition to the parking analysis, Kane said the MAPC will provide recommendations for better parking management within the downtown business district. He said the plan will help guide the town on ways to better manage what parking is available, opportunities for increased parking, and ways to better ensure parking spaces turn over so more people can make use of the downtown.
To alleviate parking, he said officials are looking at where there are opportunities for the town to acquire land for a parking lot, which could include setting up an agreement with property owners who may have a parking lot for use.
Officials are also looking into changing parking regulations or whether or not meters might help, Kane said.
“This parking study is intended to better support our businesses in the downtown Humphrey Street area,” Kane said. “We’re trying to balance the needs of both the businesses and residents and visitors going downtown, not necessarily to visit one of the businesses, but to visit the beaches.”
The survey is available for people to share their thoughts on parking in the downtown until Wednesday, Nov. 22. Those interested can also pick up a paper copy in Town Hall or the Swampscott Public Library.
