I would like to share a snippet of my life as a retail business owner in downtown Davis for the past 30 years. The reason for this letter is to support the building of the Third/Fourth/E/F retail and parking structure project.

After managing various shops in the downtown area for many years (remember Tarika and Discoveries on E Street?), I decided to take the plunge in 2002 and purchased Mother & Baby Source, which was an established business downtown. Over the first six years of ownership, I gave my blood, sweat and tears to my business, which allowed me to expand into a larger downtown location.

Then, starting in 2008, it became clear that negative business influences were far more than any small business owner could have anticipated. Big-box competition, Internet sales, a weakening economy, unemployment and smartphone apps were all contributors to our diminishing sales.

However, the lack of parking for shoppers in the downtown may be a tipping point that will cause established, beloved businesses to close in the near future.

How many customers have I lost because they got tired of circling around looking for a parking spot, only to give up and head out for the free parking at our local big box? I don’t want shopping downtown to be a “turnoff,” but an enjoyable experience, which encourages folks to park in a convenient, safe location and enjoy all that downtown has to offer.

In order to help alleviate the lack of parking issue downtown, most business owners provide their employees with paid parking permits to be used in the F Street parking structure so as to not tie up valuable streetside customer parking spots.

Please consider approval of the proposed building of the parking structure at Third/Fourth/E/F that would provide badly needed parking. The opportunity for greater access to downtown retailers is not something we can ignore or turn away. We want a vibrant, thriving downtown with a reputation as a great place to visit with nice shops and restaurants — not a place to avoid because the “parking is a nightmare.”

An additional parking structure just may be enough to keep us “mom and pop shops” around longer.

Lori Rumsey

Davis

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