Shoppers in search of a free parking spot in Cloverdale will have it easier, thanks to a new parking task force that’s already making more space available in the historic district of Surrey.
The task force formed in February after members of the Cloverdale Business Improvement Association raised concerns at the organization’s Annual General Meeting.
The group is headed up by BIA president Dean Moore and vice president Tricia Ellingsen, along with other directors.
Their first project focused on the public parking lot behind the Dale Building at 57A Avenue and 176A Street.
The task force contacted City of Surrey parking engineer Dave Harkness, and together they came up with a creative solution to an old problem – overgrown blackberry bushes and hedges were removed, and new landscaping features were put in their place.
The result is a safer, more inviting-looking place for visitors and workers to park their vehicles, according to Paul Orazietti, executive director of the Cloverdale BIA.
Phase two will see the lot behind the Henry Public House used more efficiently to create up to 30 per cent more parking, with newly-painted stalls and enclosures for garbage containers.
A second project is in the works, Orazietti said. The task force is working with local businesses like The Henry Public House and organizations like the Surrey Society Association for Community Living, which recently moved back home into its completely renovated offices on 56A Avenue.
Eight angled parking stalls will be created on 56A Avenue, Orazietti said.
The task force is also asking the city to consider purchasing a residential lot near the Cloverdale Firehall in order to expand the current public lot on 56A Avenue at 175 Street.