By: Kate Balser
FAYETTEVILLE, ARK (UATV) – Dickson Street’s replacement garage is nearing completion and many locals are ready for the construction to be finished.
The replacement parking garage at the Northwest lot of Dickson Street and West Avenue broke ground on January 10th of last year, marking over a year since construction began.
The garage will contain 330 parking spaces, retail space, and a police substation.
As Dickson Street is a part of Fayetteville’s entertainment district, there are many local restaurants and businesses in the area. However, many believe that there is an insufficient amount of parking available.
Wake and Bake employee Lauren Pike said that Fayetteville has a reputation for their lack of parking.
““I renamed the University of Arkansas the University of no-where-to-park-ansas”
Pike has lived in Fayetteville since 2016 and explained that the parking has always been an issue. However, now that she works near Dickson Street, she said that it impacts her life even more.
“Are you kidding me I’ve gotten so many tickets. It’s been a struggle and I always have to like worry about getting towed or ticketed and stuff like that.”
She explained that she can’t wait for the new garage next door to open- and she is not the only one anticipating its opening.
JJ’s Employee Marie Michael has worked on Dickson Street for two years. She said that the insufficient parking has cost her both time and money.
“The parking tickets just add up so fast I have almost $500 in parking tickets just from me trying to get to my job and to my work on time. A lot of times there’s no parking also so it’ll make me ten or fifteen minutes late and make my manager upset but the parking here is just so crazy”
Although most Fayetteville locals anticipate the garage’s opening, the construction will not be completed until June, according to City of Fayetteville parking planner Justin Clay.