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New parking designation increases accessibility

Fri, 04/29/2016 - 10:52 am
  • Photo by Thomas Wallner  
    A City of Graham streets department employee applies a coat of paint to the new handicapped parking spot on Second Street on Monday, April 25. Additionally, some of the parking spots in the block between Elm and Oak streets have been changed from parallel parking to head-on parking.
newsdesk@grahamleader.com

A section of Second Street between Elm and Oak streets received a new parking designation early last week, and with it came something nearby business owners say is important to their customers: accessibility.


Susie Cerecedez, executive director of the Graham Area United Way said she has been working with Graham Police Chief Tony Widner and  City Manager Brandon Anderson, as well as David Casteel, the previous city manager, to accomplish the goal of handicapped parking on Second Street.


“I am just really, really happy they finally did it,” she said.


“We have had some other concerns and not just the handicap concerns, but some concerns with needed parking in that area,” Anderson said. “There are two or three businesses in that area, and it gets a little cramped at times. So we were able to ... hopefully help that area out.”


Cerecedez who manages the ORR office building and rents out the properties, has been in the building for more than 17 years and currently has 10-12 renters who are over 70 years of age.


Along with the handicapped spot, the parking for part of the block was changed from parallel parking to head-on parking, offering extra spaces that wouldn’t be available with parallel parking.


“I think we are going to get four extra cars in that one spot,” Cerecedez said. “This building has a lot of renters and there are a lot of people in the beauty shop, there are a lot of people in the barber shop, and we have a lot of people on this side of the Square, so we needed more parking. So that is going to help a lot.”


According to Anderson, Public Works Administrator Jason Cottongame has visited with the business owners on Second Street, and a ramp will be coming in the near future for the location.


Along with the handicapped parking, a plan was approved six months ago by the Graham City Council to make the traffic two-way all the way around the Square. About two weeks ago, according to Anderson, that plan was implemented on the southern side of the Square.


“What we have done right now is basically the very south side and the southern half along the American Legion is two-way traffic. That’s been re-striped and re-signed,” he said. “And when I say re-striped, the parking places have been altered so basically, when you turn in off of Third Street off of Elm, you can go directly to the American Legion now instead of having to go down Second Street and then in that entrance and back around. That at this time is all we are going to change to two-way traffic is the southern side along Second Street and then between Second and Third, along Elm in front of the American Legion.”