Parking lot needed to handle traffic, events

Living across from a school is never easy during school starting or letting out. There are a lot of parents who bring their children to school and pick them up. However, it is for about 30 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes in the afternoon that there are so many cars.

But during a soccer practice or especially games there are many cars lining both sides of the street. Not only on the same block as the school, but also across Division by the apartments.

For those who live directly across from the school grounds it is very difficult to even get in and out of our driveways, especially during games. This is not once in a while, it is every afternoon during practice and weekends during the all-day, continuous games.

Some parked in front of our mail boxes, which has occasionally prevented mail from being delivered. Others are across driveways — I know they think they are only going to be there a short time, but in an emergency seconds count. Paring across a driveway is illegal and we do have the option to have the car towed at their expense. When cars have been part-way across the driveway and another car is across from the same driveway, it is very difficult getting out of that driveway without hitting one or the other car.

Many people also use the driveways as a turn-around, which is very annoying when it is several times in any one day. I have had to wait with my blinker on for someone to back out of my driveway so I could pull in. In that case, I was then backing up traffic to do so. Many parents along this stretch have small children, they have to block their driveways in order for their children to be safely outside. It gets very dangerous when the cars going by are watching the kids on the playground instead of the road. Some kids just dart right across the road when dropped off. Recently there was a fender bender in front of one of the houses.

All of the above are reasons to consider having a parking lot at the northeast end of the Farmin/Stidwell playground — enough for 50-75 cars. With an entrance and exit off Division. That should make plenty of parking for all the games, and would eliminate the need for parking on the residential side of the street. It would make our street a safer passage on those days for all. Please don’t wait for a life, or lives to be lost to do so.

LORI and ALLAN LEMMON

Sandpoint