Business owners warn CBD draft could deepen vacancy and parking challenges

Multiple business owners and residents used the public comment period to say the CBD proposal, as currently drafted, risks excluding needed services and lowering property values in a downtown with substantial vacancy.

Scott King, a longtime business owner, said the code language presented felt more restrictive than earlier outreach suggested and warned that the draft could further reduce the already-low occupancy rate downtown: "This is not what we asked for." He urged staff to halt the process before second reading and rewrite the code to reflect today's business needs.

Other commenters focused on parking and the practicality of rules that require setbacks or specific sidewalk widths; residents and business owners said publicly funded central parking or shared lots would be necessary if visitor-focused retail is the goal. Planners responded that the CBD standard aims to reduce on-site parking requirements in core pedestrian areas but that the city may need to invest in centralized parking as activity grows.

Speakers asked for more listening sessions and for explicit lists of permitted and prohibited uses; planners invited stakeholders to suggest specific uses to include or retain as the draft is refined.