Council To Rescind Parking Ordinance

An ordinance prohibiting parking on the south side of Hawthorne street affecting patient access to Minden Vision and Dental Clinic will be rescinded November 15 following discussion at the city council meeting Monday night.
Ordinance 1161 was adopted by the council following suspension of three readings at the October 18 council meeting.
Minden Vision and Dental Clinic owners Dr. Ed Alderman and Chris Birkestrand, DDS, came to the Nov. 1 council meeting hoping to reach a compromise.  The doctors told the council that the parking restriction eliminated six patient parking spaces for the clinic and forced their patients, many who are elderly, to walk in the street to get to the clinic.  The city council instructed the city administrator to have the city engineering firm re-evaluate the Hawthorne Street situation and make a recommendation at the next meeting.  
The two traffic studies for Hawthorne Street, completed by Olsson Associates engineers, cost the City of Minden nearly $1000.   
The Hawthorne Street study was initially prompted, said City Administrator Lewis, by the Minden Police Department, who brought it to the city’s attention that Hawthorne Street has had problems with a traffic bottle neck.

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