As a business owner in Ballard, I am very concerned with the lack of parking available for my clients and myself in the core Ballard business district. Now, with the news of the impending development of new condominiums at possibly the last pay parking lot left in Ballard, I believe this issue is about to reach emergency status.

Over the past five years, we have seen our nice neighborhood evolve into a rather large metropolis due in large part to the City of Seattle's directive to make Ballard a high density living area. While the merits of high density living in Ballard can be debated, what is clear is that the city has failed horribly in planning for the thousands of extra vehicles that have come with it.

Even in downtown Seattle, a traffic mess where drivers are lucky to find street parking, the truly desperate can take solace in knowing that there is the option to park in a pay lot (albeit at an extremely high price). When the our lot is removed, Ballard business owners, residents, and shoppers will not even have that option.

In the city's utopian view, no parking means people will simply use public transportation. The reality though, is with no parking options, people will not come to Ballard to do business, and business owners will be forced to move to more client friendly areas of town.

The city must take steps to fix the impending disaster they have forced upon the Ballard business core. They must put a stop to any further development until adequate parking spaces can be secured. In my assessment, anything short of that is destined to leave our community void of its strong business backbone.

Hovie Hawk

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