Parking Spaces

HAGERSTOWN -- Chairs, traffic cones and even a velvet-rope crowd controller become part of Hagerstown's landscape after a big snow as residents attempt to claim the parking spots they cleared. Police this weekend still were dealing with disputes over parking spaces cleared after the major snowstorm of Dec. 19 and 20. "It's an ongoing problem," Sgt. Chad Woodring said earlier this week. The National Weather Service is calling for snow to begin early today, with a possible accumulation of 1 to 3 inches, so residents might have to deal with the parking space issue again.

During a press conference Wednesday, proposed designs for the expansion of the Washington County Free Library on South Potomac Street in Hagerstown will be unveiled. Architect Brent Feight of Bushey Feight Morin Architects Inc. briefly described the project during Tuesday's joint meeting of the Hagerstown City Council and the Washington County Commissioners. The architect is close the end of the design phase and bid documents should be prepared by mid-April 2010, he said. A 40,000-foot expansion of the existing building and work on adjacent properties to make way for 150 parking spaces is planned, Feight said.

WASHINGTON COUNTY -- A developer hoping to open a bowling alley and a nightclub on Leitersburg Pike is challenging a county official's stance on required parking. Vehicle access to the site might be another hurdle before Aristodemos Capital Group LLC can open Seven Ten Family Entertainment Center, with a tenpin bowling alley, restaurant and arcade. It would be where Long Meadow Bowl, a duckpin alley, closed in May after 38 years. Aristodemos also wants to open a nightclub where Eclipse Nite Club and, most recently, Antietam Moose 2435 were.

WAYNESBORO, Pa. -- The scent of french fries hangs in the air when you walk toward the corner of West Main and Potomac streets in Waynesboro. Peter Galifianakis and Salomon Contreras wanted to quietly open their new restaurant, Waynesburger, last week. But it's hard to keep a secret when food is being served near oversized windows at what is possibly the town's busiest intersection. "The responses are overwhelming. We see the same faces every day and are seeing new ones, too," Galifianakis said.

WAYNESBORO, Pa. -- A large portion of Waynesboro Area Senior High School's "D Wing" was torn down this week as construction crews embark on the final portions of a $46 million renovation and expansion project. The plan is to finish all interior work by the start of school in late August, maintenance supervisor Jeff Adams said. "There still may be some site work" into the fall, he said. Windows soon will be removed from classrooms along East Second Street to allow for asbestos removal.

WILLIAMSPORT -- A six-year cancer survivor, Phil Hendrick of Hancock was enjoying the weather and the company of other survivors Sunday at the 21st annual Celebration of Life picnic. Hendrick was also celebrating his own good fortune at how he came to be diagnosed with the disease. "I slipped on a ladder and hit my side," Hendrick said. When he finally went to the doctor about the fall, the cancer was discovered. Hendrick's cancer was treated with radiation and he is now free of the disease.

HAGERSTOWN -- A new County Commuter transfer center proposed for downtown Hagerstown stands a good chance of getting about $839,000 in federal stimulus money, Washington County Public Works Director Joseph Kroboth said this week. Combined with two other potential grants, the stimulus money would reduce Washington County's share of the $1.5 million project to about $420,000, Kroboth said. When the project was first proposed last fall, officials thought the county would have to contribute more than $800,000.

ANNAPOLIS -- Sen. Alex X. Mooney is sponsoring legislation that requires handicapped parking spaces to be the same size as regular parking spaces. Mooney, R-Frederick/Washington, filed the bill after learning from Frederick County Commission on Disabilities member Gil House that there often were inequities in the size of the spaces. Mooney's bill would only apply to new parking lots built after October or to existing lots that are relined. Under current regulations, accessible parking spaces for people with disabilities - known as handicapped parking spaces - must be at least 8 feet wide, with an access aisle that is at least 5 feet wide.

CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. -- The possibility of building a garage to deal with growing parking demands in downtown Charles Town was discussed Wednesday night during a meeting of council of governments, where local governments meet informally to discuss issues. Gary Rawlings, Charles Town's new city manager, said perhaps a revenue bond could be floated to build the garage. Then large users like a bank or perhaps the American Public University System - which has 185 employees in town - might be interested in leasing spaces to help pay off the project, Rawlings said.

MARTINSBURG, W.VA. - Six years after a transportation consultant presented strategies to improve parking in downtown Martinsburg, another firm is revisiting the topic and building on it - on paper. Proffitt & Associates Architects of Frederick, Md., is expected to provide civil engineering, architectural design and parking consulting work as part of a $79,200 parking garage study. "The consultant is still doing site evaluations as well as getting the financial information to also put together an estimate per site," City Manager Mark Baldwin said last week.