WARSAW — The city of Warsaw is looking at how to improve downtown parking conditions and is doing so with a committee.

Part of the problem with downtown parking is that some employees who work in the downtown park close to their office (rather than city parking lots) thereby tying up parking spaces needed during the day for patrons doing business with stores.

City Planner Justin Taylor said they’re taking a holistic approach at the entire issue.

Parking fines are one issue.

"The fines may be different. Right now, we have $10 fines," Taylor said. "We'll be looking at other communities and seeing if that's in line with communities of our size or whether those need to escalated in any way."

Another aspect the committee will look at is possibly increasing the number of parking spots reserved for short-term parking and handicapped parking.

Officials believe more short-term parking spots might be needed as the number of new businesses caters to a changing customer client base.

The city has 19 ADA spaces which include on-street and off-street municipal parking lots.

Parking permits for downtown residents will also be reviewed.

Parking enforcement officers have always used written tickets when citing motorists for parking violations, but that may also change as officials look at other ways to do that.

The city is expected to hire a consultant to provide insights.

Decisions could be made within a few months, Taylor said.

"We're hoping by the end of the year, we have some of this in place. It's kind of flexible," he said.

The committee has already begun meeting and includes various stakeholders in the community. Terry Sweeny, recently hired as director of downtown development for Main Street Warsaw, is part of the group.

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