Mill Race parking lot opens

By Travis Fischer, tkfischer@charlescitypress.com

The Mill Race Parking Lot is officially open for parking after nearly two months of construction.

“It was a bit of a hassle, but I think the end result is going to be a benefit for the area,” said Mayor Dean Andrews on Thursday, Nov. 2, at an impromptu ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the parking lot’s opening.

Within minutes of the “Do not enter” signs being removed, cars were already starting to trickle in to take advantage of the newly completed parking lot.

Originally planned to start construction in July, the Mill Race project was pushed back to late summer due to difficulties in getting the permeable pavers that qualified the project for the $1 million stormwater infrastructure grant that funded the project.

Along with making the parking lot less susceptible to flooding, funding the project with the infrastructure grant allowed the city to pay for the new parking lot without using any local tax dollars.

“That’s an additional benefit to get a great result,” said Andrews.

Construction finally began in early September, with an estimated six weeks to completion. Due to a delay in moving utilities, the City Council approved a nine day extension to the original 30 working day plan.

Though it took a little longer than anticipated, and there is still some signage that needs to go up, the parking lot is now officially open and ready for use.

“It’s awesome. It’s going to be great for business,” said Nathan Skuster, owner of The Pub on the Cedar.

Of all the businesses impacted by closed parking lot, The Pub on the Cedar was hit the hardest as patrons had to get accustomed to finding parking in other areas and walking further. Now that the parking lot is open, Skuster says that it hasn’t taken long for people to take advantage of the new space.

“It was kind of a struggle for the last few weeks, but it was worth it,” said Skuster. “It’s just a nice thing for everybody. I think it’s going to work out well.”

Along with adding new parking capacity, the new parking lot comes with some changes to the flow of downtown traffic. Drivers coming off of Jackson Street onto Clark Street will need to be mindful that the intersection now has stop signs on all sides.

“There’s never been a stop sign there before, so that’s something people will need to get used to,” said Andrews.