TOLEDO, OH (Toledo News Now) -
TARTA wants public input
on their new downtown hub project, which could negatively impact at least one
downtown destination.
TARTA officials said the
downtown hub would make things a lot easier for the agency. The project would
do away with every bus route going in and out of downtown, and instead, all
routes would stop at the hub.
But that would mean taking
over most of the REU parking lot, which is often used by customers of the Valentine
Theatre. Without those parking spaces, theatre officials are worried they will
lose business.
"They do rely on that
parking lot," said Valentine General Manager Jori Jex. "It's manned, it's
visible, it's easy access to the theatre. It's affordable. It has been the main
parking lot for the last 14 years, and it has served us well."
Jex said she's afraid many
of the theatre's elderly customers may have a hard time getting to the building
without the parking lot.
"Our feeling is that at
this point, even if we had a reduction of 10 percent in our audience base, it
could be devastating, not only to the Valentine, but all the local art groups
that perform here," Jex said.
Jex hopes at least some of
the parking spaces can be saved in the new development.
"Our hope is that there's
just a global vision for what's good for all of the organizations downtown,"
she said. "It would behoove the city to lose a historic theatre such as the
Valentine."
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An image of what the hub is expected to look like.
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