Cindy MacDougall
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Dec 17/99) - Come next week, lunchtime shoppers will be able to park their cars along Franklin Ave. while they buy last-minute Christmas gifts.

City council narrowly passed a motion Monday night to stop enforcing the parking prohibition along Yellowknife's main drag between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. The enforcement holiday begins Monday and will last three months.

Councillors Bob Brooks and Blake Lyons spearheaded the motion, arguing the parking will bring and keep more shoppers downtown at lunch.

"We have a window of opportunity to try this because a number of downtown offices will be having Donnie Days," said Lyons, referring to the mandatory days off public servants take during the holiday season.

Coun. Cheryl Best agreed.

"It may keep people downtown longer when before, they'd leave at 11:15 because at lunch, they could get a ticket."

Lyons argued the trial run could help Franklin Ave. businesses recover from this summer's street construction.

"After this summer's construction, many businesses were hit hard," he said.

"And here it is Christmastime. This could be a chance to make it back."

Coun. Alan Woytuik disagreed with the plan. He said traffic studies had proven downtown traffic is busiest at lunch.

"I'm looking back to when there was two-lane traffic in the downtown, and it was a nightmare," Woytuik said. "People avoided the downtown area."

Brooks argued the traffic study was inadequate, and a three-month parking trial would be the perfect experiment.

"We now have the chance to do a real world study," he said. "We'll be the judges of how it turns out. We won't need a consultant to do it for us."

In the end, the motion passed 4-3, with Woytuik, Coun. Robert Slaven and Coun. Ben McDonald opposed.

Mayor David Lovell shook his head after the decision was made.

"I don't think this is the proper way to make this decision, with no prior research or consultation," he said.

"I hate being put in a position of advising against something I agree with. But we have signage and a bylaw and if anything happens, we're up the creek."

Stephen Gwilliam, co-owner of Sutherland's Drugs on Franklin Ave., said he's thrilled with the decision.

"I think giving us some extra parking would be beneficial," he said.

"Three months should prove it can be done and should be continued."

Gwilliam said he could not predict whether the parking trial would make up for some of this summer's losses due to construction along Franklin.

"If it was done closer to the summer, yes, it may have had an affect," he said. "If I can make $200,000 in four days, I'll be surprised."

Gloria Biscaye, who parked her car on Franklin Wednesday morning, said she was glad for the change.

"That's really great," she said as she dashed into the bank.

Parking meters in the downtown area are also getting a short holiday. There is no need to plunk quarters in the meters until Monday, Jan. 3.