ROCKLAND — The City of Rockland will host a Public Forum to discuss the findings and recommendations resulting from the Downtown Rockland Parking Study. A previous Public Forum was held on November 2 to discuss community perceptions, issues, concerns, and ideas regarding downtown parking conditions.

The Public Forum will be held on Wednesday, February 15, at 6 p.m., in the City Council Chambers, Rockland City Hall, 270 Pleasant Street, Rockland. All members of the public, including those that live, work, shop, or visit downtown Rockland are encouraged to attend and actively participate in the Forum.

The forum format is intended to be both interactive and collaborative, according to the City, in a news release. Charts, tables, images, and color-coded mapping will be presented to characterize the current use of the public and private parking supply downtown, identify key findings, and recommend short-, medium- and longer-term improvements.

The City has contracted with John Burke, a parking and transit consultant, to conduct the study. Burke is a registered professional engineer (PE) in the State of Maine, and Certified Administrator of Public Parking (CAPP) through the International Parking & Mobility Institute (IPMI). He has served as a Parking and Transportation Director for multiple cities and has prepared parking management plans for several coastal communities in New England including Bar Harbor and Camden, Maine, Newburyport and Plymouth, Massachusetts, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and others.

The City retained the consultant to study downtown parking operations, evaluate parking supply and demand, and recommend changes to parking regulations, policies, and management strategies – that could include expanded paid parking strategies – for the purpose of improving overall downtown parking conditions.

“We were encouraged by and appreciated the community turnout and extensive input received at the first Public Forum. It is extremely important we continue this dialogue with stakeholders and all users of our downtown parking system as we move to finalize a downtown parking management plan,” says City Manager Tom Luttrell.

For more information, please contact Rhett Lamb, City Planner, at 594-0308.