With the advent of the Fly-fishing Shop, now located in the parking lot next to Joy and Co., our parking problem in Grand Marais has gotten even worse.
Already it is difficult for locals and visitors to find places to park within walking distance of our workplaces or shopping locations. Though the lot where the new Fly-fishing Shop is located was technically a private lot, employees of the surrounding businesses actually used it. Now people working in that area of town will have to scramble and struggle to find a parking place within walking distance of their workplace. Vendor tents being placed in the parking lots is also an issue; as once again, valuable parking spaces are being taken in favor of selling knickknacks.
The lack of significant parking around North House Folk School is also a major issue. It makes the highway there extremely dangerous, as you almost never can tell when a person chatting on his cell phone is going to come out from behind a car and walk into the road. The lack of parking spaces also narrows the highway and blocks view of intersections, which could very well lead to a major accident.
This isn’t just an issue of convenience for locals and visitors, but also an issue of safety.
For future developments, I strongly urge the city to take into account how adding a vendor tent here, or a building there, will affect parking for everyone. It’s been an issue for years and is only going to get worse if something isn’t done soon.
Gus Persons
Grand Marais, MN
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