Tom Joyce | The News

Scott Graham, a member of the Mount Airy Board of Commissioners, makes a point Thursday afternoon during a discussion on problems with delivery trucks downtown.

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A public hearing has been set on a proposal to restrict deliveries by trucks in downtown Mount Airy, which drew support from members of the city board of commissioners during a meeting Thursday.

“These people have been parking in traffic on Main Street because they can,” Commissioner Jon Cawley said of a longtime practice of truck drivers stopping and occupying one lane of the roadway while making deliveries to downtown businesses.

“We don’t do it anywhere else in town,” Cawley said of permitting a practice that causes inconveniences for other downtown motorists and poses a safety hazard. At any given time during the day, one or more trucks will be blocking the roadway, requiring other drivers to zigzag around them, according to the commissioners’ discussion.

Board members aired the issue during Thursday afternoon’s meeting at the request of Commissioner Scott Graham. He has suggested limiting on-street deliveries to early morning and late-afternoon hours, with truck drivers required to park the vehicles in off-street municipal lots for deliveries at other times.

However, Graham said at the meeting that this was just one idea, and he hoped his fellow commissioners would discuss the situation and set the public hearing for their next meeting on Oct. 18. Definitive action to regulate the delivery process could come after that, he said.

Cawley and other commissioners were eager to offer their comments Thursday.

“I think we can find creative ways to solve this problem,” he said.

Cawley added that nowhere does it say in city ordinances that trucks may block lanes of traffic while making deliveries, which he said would be a “ridiculous” proposition on its face.

“But we’re not doing anything about it — and it’s time to do something about it,” he added of the situation downtown.

“This has been a problem since the 1950s,” said Commissioner Dean Brown, whose father was a merchant there.

Attempts once were made to require that deliveries occur at the rear of stores, which even included the city government paving alleyways to make this possible, Brown recalled. Problems resulted due to larger trucks not being able to negotiate those areas, including one vehicle getting trapped, he said.

Another problem was encountered due to the slope of the downtown area, said Brown, who explained that it led to delivery personnel being faced with the daunting task of pulling heavily loaded hand trucks up long flights of stairs.

However, Graham said the city government is not obligated to provide front-door delivery access in the downtown area.

Commissioner Shirley Brinkley said city officials should be cautious with any proposal to limit delivery hours, which could delay important shipments to merchants.

But after such concerns were expressed Thursday about the possible impact on downtown businesses, Cawley had a stern response.

“I don’t think we need to care what business owners think. They (truck drivers) are stopping in traffic, and that should not be permissible anytime,” Cawley said.

What would be the reaction if drivers of delivery trucks did the same on U.S. 601, if they had trouble negotiating the parking lot of a business, he asked.

Commissioner Steve Yokeley did question Downtown Business Association President Phil Marsh, who attended Thursday’s meeting, as to whether there’s a consensus among downtown merchants concerning the restrictions.

Marsh replied that he had heard no one speak against such rules, which commissioners say are part of a larger objective of having the central business district become more pedestrian-friendly. Marsh pointed out that such steps to make the shopping district inviting to visitors should be embraced.

“That’s what you want to do,” he said.

Designated Spaces

Although no specific proposals for remedying the problem were voted on Thursday afternoon, Brown offered an alternative suggestion for keeping trucks off North Main Street.

His plan would set aside parking spaces for trucks on side streets adjoining North Main during certain hours of the day. Brown suggested two such spaces each on Moore Avenue, Franklin Street, Virginia Street, Oak Street and others. Spaces on the opposite side of North Main Street from the post office also could be designated for this, according to Brown.

In response to a question from Mayor Deborah Cochran about tourists being unaware of the reserved spaces and parking there, Brown said they could be marked off with red paint or otherwise indicated.

Brinkley said some people have told her that one solution might be to limit truck deliveries to one lane of North Main Street, which would eliminate the need to weave around trucks occupying both lanes.

“I certainly don’t want to stand in the way of businesses on Main Street,” Brown said. “But it’s a very dangerous thing to have these trucks in the street.”

He said special dangers exist to jaywalkers stepping into traffic from in front of parked trucks that obscure pedestrians’ presence to oncoming motorists.

Other Business

Also Thursday afternoon, the commissioners:

• Approved a resolution accepting an unopened portion of Creed Street by the city and formally opening its 30-foot right of way for public use. Creed Street is located off Rockford Street and is near East Haymore Street. The board’s action will improve the “connectivity of the community” along with making access easier by police, fire and public works personnel, according to a city government memo.

Public Services Director Jeff Boyles explained before the vote that the affected portion of Creed Street has existed on paper for years, but never been completed. “There is a gap of about 150 feet,” Boyles said of Creed Street not being a continuous route.

The impetus for Thursday’s action was the acquisition of an apartment complex in that area by new ownership. Many vehicles have been using the parking lot of the apartments to continue to the other end of Creed Street, which prompted concern about damage to the asphalt.

Completing the unopened segment of Creed Street will eliminate that problem and allow better overall access, Boyles said. The paving of that portion will be done by city crews, he added.

• Voted to update a mutual-aid agreement that governs situations in which the Mount Airy Police Department renders assistance to neighboring law enforcement agencies.

“It’s critical for us and our neighboring law enforcement agencies to have these mutual-aid agreements in place,” Police Chief Dale Watson told board members. Resources can be limited in smaller communities such as Mount Airy, which require different departments to assist each other as needed, he said.

State statutes require such a document specifying the rules and guidelines to be followed by law enforcement personnel in working with other agencies.

• Appointed David Beal, a former commissioner, to the Housing Authority of the City of Mount Airy to replace Bill G. Belton. Belton had died on Aug. 10 with more than three years of his term remaining. The authority manages public housing neighborhoods in the municipality.

Reach Tom Joyce at 719-1924 or tjoyce@heartlandpublications.com.