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I often hear people complaining about the lack of parking spaces downtown and the need for a parking garage. The problem with the parking is that too many business owners and their workers are taking the prime parking spaces on Bay Street. Examples of this are: Luthers--Stretch and his Mother are always on Bay Street: Plums--many of their workers are parking all day on Bay; Kathleens-- look for the red pick up truck along with many other employees. These are a few examples, I could name many more lazy people.
Where is Main Street Beaufort? They are scared to get involved because many of the violators are members. They don't want to lose members. the police cannot be there all day.
The city or individual investors should not throw away their money on a garage until this problem is resolved.
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Bigger businesses, like the ones I work for (Outback and Best Buy) make the employees park further away. At Best Buy we have to park on the side of the building, and on days like the day after Thanksgiving, we have to park all the way by sonic and walk up to the store to give the customers plenty of parking room. And at Outback, we have to park in the Bank of America parking lot, because when we open, they are closed, and that leaves our entire parking lot open for the customers. But when I am on Bay street, I normally park on either end and just walk. Normally its the end with the marina. I dont mind the walk, because I think its always nice to just take a stroll downtown.
At Plums you can be fired for parking any closer than the Beaufort Inn. Bay, Scott and West Streets are all off-limits for employees. However, the poorly lit walk to your car late at night can be a harrowing experience.
Some of Plums employees DO park on Bay Street. They say it is because they have to walk to their cars in the dark (about a year or so ago a waitress was attacked at 2am I think). The owner wont stop them from doing this because he is afraid if of liability.
Try parking at Beaufort Memorial. The employee parking is so far away I might as well leave my car at home.lol
Not for long! They are supposed to start building a garage for you guys soon!
Yep, then BMH employees will be parking down the road in the maxway/piggly wiggly lot. There is supposed to be a shuttle that will run every 15 minutes...
I will definately leave my car at home for that one!!! I think it will be kind of fun to walk up there and catch the shuttle.
It wasn't one waitress, there were quite a few in the period of a couple of weeks. They were robbed, raped, and left naked in the middle of nowhere. One girl was cut pretty badly, but managed to fight off her attackers before they could abduct her. There needs to be a better solution, and until there is, a little consideration. Downtown employees try to take care of each other, but they shouldn't have to.
One is what made the paper, along with a tourist a few weeks later. This was years ago.
I know, everyone was so upset that nothing was in the paper, until after three girls were assaulted. It was a very scary time for women working downtown and is still quite vivid in my mind. I have carried a knife in my hand on my way to my car every night since then. I won't let any of the girls that work for me walk by themselves at night. And if that means I'm downtown at 2 am, so be it(I work mornings).
I know, everyone was so upset that nothing was in the paper, until after three girls were assaulted. It was a very scary time for women working downtown and is still quite vivid in my mind. I have carried a knife in my hand on my way to my car every night since then. I won't let any of the girls that work for me walk by themselves at night. And if that means I'm downtown at 2 am, so be it(I work mornings).
take wonderful care of your girls :)
Yes it may have been a couple years ago that those incidents happened, but that's not to say it couldn't happen again at any time.
as a former server at the long-gone "Bank Bar & Grill"-- we were made to park in a small lot next to the post office several blocks down the road. But the nightshift was allowed to park a *bit* closer because they didn't want female employees walking by themselves at night. The same goes for when I worked at KCN Design Group on West St. I parked at Carteret St. Methodist church and hoofed it *several* blocks. It is completely reasonable for the management to ask this of employees. City leaders need to ask business owners to work with them to help ease parking problems. Business owners can always buy spots in the many lots that are reserved and have their employees walk. It won't kill them.
Seems like the employees could find one parking spot, like some of the church lots or library and all walk together. A group is a lot safer than a loner or even two. The Baptist, Episcopalian and Presbyterian lots are all close together with a lot of parking and not used at night.
Seems like the employees could find one parking spot, like some of the church lots or library and all walk together. A group is a lot safer than a loner or even two. The Baptist, Episcopalian and Presbyterian lots are all close together with a lot of parking and not used at night.
servers are usually stagered in times to come in. It's fine at the end of the night though.
You are absolutely right about the parking....there is not enough room downtown Bay street....but be very careful what you say about downtown beaufort employees parking on bay street....someday it may be you trying to park there and you will see the difficulties with parking...and furthermore, if the employees were to park in church parking lots, they would be run out of there, also....so what do you propose for a solution....
Those church lots get used alot when parking is full along Bay, especially when there are big events like the Water Festival. I've seen some in the library parking lot after 6:00PM when the meters quit. They are always walking toward Bay to eat I guess. Some churches in other cities have no parking signs, but there are none in Beaufort. Even in Charleston, there are only a few that will post no parking.