MOUNT VERNON — Effective immediately, the municipal parking garage at 5 N. Gay St. is again closed for public parking. Four handicapped spots on the third floor accessible via North Gay Street will remain open for municipal court-related use.
Safety-service Director Tanner Salyers made the decision today.
“It’s just not in good shape with the freezing and thawing that we keep having,” he said.
“On the third floor, a rampart has separated. We’ve been working to get somebody to come and remove it because at some point it will fall.”
Salyers said a section on the second floor has buckled, and cracks are visible. Additionally, drivers have difficulty navigating the basement level and often hit the support beams.
“Our employees are familiar with the facility, but the public is not,” Salyers said. “If you are not careful, you will bump those steel beams, and the people in the building can feel it.”
Salyers said building occupants are safe.
“It’s not impending doom. There has been no major change in the building, but it has continued to deteriorate. The goal here is we’re trying to mitigate any unnecessary risk,” he said.
Salyers will lift a lot of the parking restrictions on Public Square and the downtown area to provide parking alternatives. He has the authority to do that for 90 days.
“We’ll likely come to council and ask them to lift the restrictions for an indefinite period,” he said.
Accelerated parking garage funding
The city is also working with state representatives and senators to secure funding to speed up the new municipal courthouse and police station projects.
The Ohio Legislature passed the Strategic Community Investment Fund last year. Last month, the Ohio House passed legislation appropriating money to the infrastructure fund. The Ohio Senate expects to release its appropriations in May or June.
In making the case for funding, Salyers said, “We’re an Intel-adjacent county. It’s a safety concern. We’re seeing population growth. The municipal court services the entire county, not just Mount Vernon.”
Salyers said the city specifically asked for help to “get the ball rolling” on the police station, capital money for demolition, and funding for a historical review/environmental study.
“In the meantime, we can’t just let people continue to be in the building. It’s not a crisis at this point that we have to move everybody out, but we are trying to accelerate the process,” he said.
