ÃÛèÖÊÓƵ

Janesville City Council members Wednesday floated the idea of moving the overnight parking lot from the Jackson Street municipal lot to the parking areas at Dawson Ball Fields or Lions Beach.

Council members Paul Benson, Paul Williams and Tom Wolfe met over video call Wednesday with members from the cityÃÛèÖÊÓƵ FOCUS group, which works to identify gaps in services for people experiencing homelessness.

The meeting has been expected since late March, when the council extended the overnight parking lot ordinance to Sept. 30 at the Jackson Street municipal lot to allow more time to decide on a location.

Council members and residents have said the Jackson Street lot is not ideal because it is visible from busy Jackson Street and Centerway. It also does not have a bathroom with running water and is near the police headquarters, which makes some potential users uncomfortable.

Use of the Jackson Street lot was low in the early winter months but has increased since spring, according to data shared Wednesday.

The average number of vehicles per night in the Jackson Street lot has increased from 0.48 in late winter to 1.16, City Manager Mark Freitag said.

Fourteen unique vehicles used the lot between Feb. 16 and May 1, Freitag said.

The maximum number of cars seen on a night was four, he said.

Janesville police Sgt. Ben Thompson said no overnight parking-related incidents have occurred at the lot.

Low usage in January and February likely was connected to cold weather. More people also are willing to house homeless people during winter months, Freitag said.

The Jackson Street lot still is used less than the Traxler Park lot, which averaged 3.73 cars per night last year.

Jessica Locher, associate director of local charity ECHO, said proximity to the police department is a deterrent for people experiencing homelessness.

About 65% to 70% of recent clients who are or soon might be sleeping in their cars told ECHO workers they do not feel comfortable parking near the police department, she said.

Officials in other meetings have acknowledged people are sleeping in cars in other areas of the city.

As recently as Tuesday, police have received complaints from downtown business owners that people are sleeping in the Parker Drive parking garage during the day, Thompson said.

Wolfe thinks the lot at Dawson fields, just south of downtown, meets many of the requirements city officials have. It is located on a lesser-traveled part of Beloit Avenue and has bathroom facilities and electrical outlets for people to charge devices.

Wolfe said he supports the overnight parking program, but he would prefer to choose a lot that is not near a residential neighborhood like the Dawson parking lot is.

Freitag said Dawson Field could be considered, but there are concerns about late-night softball games impinging on overnight parking hours and bathrooms that cannot be used during winter.

Benson said he has played softball at Dawson fields for years and efforts have been made to end games by 9:30 p.m.

Overnight parking hours begin at 10 p.m.

Benson suggested moving the overnight parking lot to the area outside Lions Beach.

Most of Lions Beach parking is on-street parking along Palmer Drive, but a small, city-owned lot is nearby at the pump station, said Maggie Darr, assistant to the city manager.

Lions Beach also offers bathroom facilities. And although it has street parking, Palmer Drive is not busy at night, Benson said.

Freitag said the city could explore that option further, including fielding potential concerns from the adjacent Rotary Gardens.

The city council has until Sept. 30 to decide on a new location or keep the existing location.

A community engagement forum to hear residents’ ideas and concerns will be scheduled in July unless restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic prevent such a forum, Freitag said.