Around town there are signs in yards that read "Logan City Leave Our Property Alone". The issue is planned enforcement of a restriction on parking in the "park strip" - the area between the curb and the sidewalk. The proponents of enforcement see this parking practice as being related to blight because it makes these formerly single family homes easier to rent out to college kids.
The area where this is most common (or the focus of the issue) is the area just west of the university that's really popular to rent out to college kids. Many of the homes were built in before 1950. Many of the properties are situated on small lots with structures blocking the ability move parking to the back of the lots. The other local factor is that during winter months parking is not allowed on the streets at night - for ease of snow removal - I guess.
What I find kind of odd in this whole situation is that the area in question has fewer "blighted" properties than other areas in central Logan - such as the west side and the Island. Equally goofy are the "alternatives" being proposed. I'm not sure what Steve Thompson is getting at and why he thinks it will help. Keep the parking, increase taxes and subsidize the improvement of "blighted" property and offer free sidewalk snow removal? The details are as murky as coffee - to borrow Mr. Thompson's "joke".
The city council will vote on a resolution tomorrow night at the Municipal City Council Meeting, 5:30, May 13. My prediction is that this issue will not be resolved so quickly. As a prospective home buyer, the uncertainty is making it hard to make a decision about where to settle in Logan.
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