You have to read this one carefully to fully understand what is happening here. At first glance, it might seem that the downtown merchants were looking to have free parking. However it’s not the case. I’ll bet this is what happened:
A marketing person for the convention center lost a deal to another center nearby. She or he, to cover for the loss, told her boss that there was a lot of pressure on for free parking; after all, the competition offers it.
Now as a salesperson, I understand and can commensurate with that. You want every possible advantage and if the other guy has a red one, you want to be able to offer a red one too. Before we can make a good determination on this one, I think we need a few more facts.
First of all, how many deals have actually been lost on the parking costs? Is the center willing to pay the city out of other income for the parking? The list is endless.
But at some point, my guess is that someone’s job may be on the line here. That person is the one who is going to take the fall for lower revenue at the local arena and parking is as good a scapegoat (or Ox) as any.
I sympathize with the operator who was testifying, and scrambling a bit. They are talking about destroying his business. The city offers free parking in its lots downtown, and the commercial lots suck wind. Where have we seen that before?
Come on, Buffalo. What you need is a new coat of paint on the convention center and perhaps a ‘new’ look for other downtown events. After all…”If you build it they..” you know the rest.
JVH
