A downtown Brighton merchant is taking exception to the consideration of possible new parking rules in the city which could result in parking meters. Mac Miller, with his wife, Mondi, own the Artisan’s Bench on Main Street, told the City Council Thursday night that the parking meters would be a negative factor and might deter people from shopping in downtown Brighton.

Miller said the city had tried parking meters back in the nineties and, realizing they weren’t paying for themselves or providing a source of revenue, took them out. Miller told council that if the city reinstalled parking meters, it would be sending the wrong message and encouraging people to go to the malls, where parking is free.

Miller said that people have no problem finding a parking space during the daytime, and there should not be parking fees. But he said since there are so many restaurants downtown and people love to eat out these days, some kind of parking enforcement could be explored for the period from 6 p.m. to midnight, when parking is at a premium.

The city recently hired a company to do a 6-month parking study of all aspects of parking downtown, including a possible multi-story parking structure, and city Manager Nate Geinzer stressed that meters is just one of the many options that will be researched during the study. (TT)