On page 8A in the Feb. 19 edition of the Cherokee Scout, there was a detailed report on Murphy Town Council members’ annual retreat. They discussed a wide ranging number of issues confronting the town, both in the present and into the future, and considered ways to make the good things even better and improve areas that need it.
One of those areas that needs improvement was the very last line of the article. It reads: “The next challenge, town council members said, is to convince business owners to park somewhere other than in front of their businesses.”
It’s understandable that some business owners and employees don’t want to use
the town’s parking lot across from the Cherokee County Courthouse off Bill Hughes Avenue if there’s not enough room behind the building. On wintry weather days, if your business is on the north side of downtown, parking on the south side would mean not just a longer walk, but a mighty cold or wet one.
At the same time, every spot your business is using along Hiwassee, Peachtree and Tennessee streets, or Valley River Avenue, is a place where a customer can’t park. And, unlike employees, customers have a choice in whether they make a longer walk to spend money at your business.
That means when the downtown parking spots are completely full, some businesses are obviously making money – but others are losing it.
Parking is especially important since the N.C. Department of Transportation started work Monday on a project designed to enhance safety, improve traffic flow and create a more pedestrian-friendly downtown, which includes a permanent roundabout in the middle of the four roads mentioned above. Negativity surrounding construction and the traffic circle may keep some customers away just because.
The project will result in an increase of 12 parking spaces overall when completed. Other spots were gained when the Murphy Police Department left downtown for Hill Street, and still more will be available when workers relocate from the Cherokee County Courthouse to a new building behind Murphy Elementary School in 2026.
Until then, however, business owners still need to make money in order to pay their bills. That makes it extra important that businesses use every parking space available for customers – and customers only.
– Publisher David Brown