Good afternoon everyone,
Last week Oxford, PA of all places, broke ground on a parking garage.
The project is part of a continuing for the Chester County town that is seeing signs of a turnaround of its downtown as development spreads to the west. Next up could be Rehoboth Beach.
The news may have been a little jarring to Newark residents who have seen the city dither for years over the need for a parking structure.
Newark has done a decent job in managing parking but faces an uphill climb as the once inaccurate perception of a lack of spaces moves towards reality.
Options are dwindling as properties are redeveloped.
The lack of action on the parking front is to some degree a reflection of the level of discomfort some feel with the direction of present-day Newark.
Long gone are the days of a farm town with a college. Meanwhile, the University of Delaware has become a major research institution with global ambitions and more than a passing interest in the city.
Evidence of the change came last year when the volunteer-driven and city-staffed Downtown Newark Partnership was dissolved in favor of an entity that will be financed by the city and the university.
The focus of the Newark Partnership will be on the city as a whole. The group holds its first meeting this week and as the Newark Post noted, the clock will be ticking from a city council that wants to see results its investment.
One of its first orders of business should be parking, even with the disruption we will see with the reconstruction of Main Street. – Doug Rainey, chief content editor
(Note: This writer served for a short time on the board of the Downtown Newark Partnership. The organization was instrumental in efforts to gain a national Main Street designation).
