BLOOMINGTON, Ill (WMBD) — As Bloomington deals with Market Street parking garage closure and possible demolition, one neighboring business raises potential concerns.
Vicki Tilton has owned the building where Fox & Hounds Salon and Day Spa is located behind the Market Street parking garage on Monroe Street for around 30 years.
Tilton said that her business will mostly not be affected, with the building having around 50 parking spots on its own in front.
“The garage is not going to affect our business. Our clients never parked in there. Maybe on Saturdays, because it would be open and free on Saturdays or evenings,” she said.
While her employees have not parked in the Monroe Street Garage for safety reasons. There is still parking available to them.
“There’s a lot immediately to the west that was available. Lifelong Access has bought the building that used to be the Pantagraph newspaper building,” she said.
However, that parking will not be available much longer.
“They have now posted signs that as of Oct. 1, that parking space will not be available,” she said. “So until Oct. 1, my employees are still pretty much parking there, there’s plenty of on-street parking to the west on Monroe to the west, but also Lee Street and Roosevelt Street.”
Despite the minor setback, Tilton is not worried about the loss of parking availability downtown.
“If you look at the maps, I mean we call it an urban myth that there’s no parking in downtown Bloomington,” she said. “This is not true. There’s plenty of parking our society is very spoiled. people think they should not have to walk a block or two.”
She was supportive of the possibilities of what the current space could be turned into in the future. She did raise concerns over a total demolition of the parking garage.
“I think the biggest challenge we’re going to deal with is demolition as far as dirt and dust and noise and that type of thing,” she said.
For now, the Market Street parking garage is closed while Bloomington city leadership decides on final plans on what to use the space for in the future and on potential demolition.
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