Business Plans Aplenty... But There's That Matter of Parking

The charm of Wauwatosa is at once its bane.

Tosa, the City of Homes, is a place where residential and business districts intersect and intertwine. Such quaint interplay exists when commercial districts are thriving hubs, which also marks where charm and bane collide.

As examples: three consecutive conditional use requests by businesses seeking to start up or expand in the city each drew the businesses' nearest neighbors to City Hall Monday to voice concerns about traffic, safety and parking issues imposed on their adjacent and primarily residential realms.

Two conditional use requests to expand existing businesses earned unanimous Plan Commission approval. The startup proposal earned a one-month hold to flesh out project details with city staff.

The most common complaint cited by the handful of residential and business neighbors who opposed the three proposals: parking, parking, and parking.

A child care center proposal for 7208 W. North Ave. was the first to undergo scrutiny. Darnesheia Jackson said her center would operate from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., serving up to 30 children per shift. The center's primary access would be at the back of the building, off the alley and near the building's back parking lot, a portion of which would be converted into a play area.

Commissioners and residential neighbors cited safety risks in the alley or on North Avenue if parents drop off or pick up children at the front of the building. And converting a portion of the building's back parking lot into a play area would constrain already limited parking in the North Avenue business district.

"It is difficult to support a business that takes away parking," said Mayor Jill Didier, commission chair.

Placing a child care center in the middle of a commercial trade district also raised red flags for commissioners, who questioned whether a North Avenue location with a converted parking lot as a play area was a good fit for a child care center. The proposal was placed on hold, to allow Jackson time to meet with staff to flesh out details on how the site might work for her proposed business, or to help her find another site within the city.

Next up, at 1413 N. 60th St. The owners want to expand indoor and outdoor seating from a combined total of 20 to 72 seats, while parking for the business would remain relatively the same. The business hours also would be extended, and would be 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday and Saturday, 6:30 to 9 p.m. on Fridays, and 6:30 to 4 p.m. Sundays.

With the limited current seating count, residential neighbors said, illegal or insufficient parking already is an issue. Adding 52 seats – when weather allows for use of the proposed total peak capacity of 72 seats – with no additional parking will exacerbate the problem, neighbors said.

For this proposal, commissioners had little sympathy for neighbors, but encouraged business owner Sandy Murphy to actively educate customers about parking options, even those that mean walking a few blocks.

Commissioner Jody Lowe said Highlands Cafe creates a "wonderful corner" where Wauwatosa and Milwaukee intersect, along with the business and its residential neighbors. Didier described the parking dilemma as the "double-edged sword of successful restaurants."

"That's one of the charms of Wauwatosa, this integration of residential areas and business," said commissioner Chris Jackson. Highlands Cafe is like a cornerstone for the neighborhood, he said, attracting customers who walk as well as drive to the cafe. 

The cafe expansion will go before the Community Development Committee June 28, along with the proposed business expansion of , currently at 10633 W. North Ave.

Grocery owner Dinesh Sanghavi proposes to expand into the first level of a three-story office building at 10701 W. North Ave. Although the building includes a two-level, 74-space parking lot, the president of the neighboring Equity Bank says the grocer's move and the related influx of customers in cars could pose parking problems for the banking business, particularly if the second- and third-level office space is occupied.

The building at 10701 W. North Ave. currently is vacant, according to Sanyog Rathod, architect for the project with Sol Design and Consulting of Cincinnati, Ohio. The grocery, if the proposed expansion into a new building moves forward, would use 5,000 square feet of first-floor space for the retail portion of its business, Rathod said. Another 1,000 square feet of first-floor space and 4,500 square feet of basement-level space would be used for the shipping and handling of the grocer's goods.

Commissioners urged Sanghavi to work with the bank to come up with a solution to potential parking problems during construction of a new entry at the back of the building, and to consider sharing its lot with its business neighbor during non-peak hours. The grocery store hours would be 10 a.m. to 7:30p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays, and Sanghavi said the bulk of customers shop in the evenings, after regular banking hours.

"We have to be creative so our buildings are full," Didier said. "We have to be prosperous as a community, and we want both to flourish."