Please note that the TOTAL parking in the Library lot will be less than what is currently there after the work that is currently occuring.

The comment from Ms Ekers indicates that the city is adding 14 new spaces to OFFSET (not replace) SOME (not all) of the spaces that will be lost during the construction of the gymnasium.

The comment from Ms Ekers that there will be ample parking in spite of the presence of construction vehicles is an opinion not fact. Please call Ms Ekers directly if you can not find a place to park during construction. Valet service for library patrons is not included in the cost of construction.

The idea that there will be ample parking after construction of the new Gymnasium for Library patrons is a dream not a fact.

Time will tell.

The OPINION that there will not be ample parking after construction of the new gym is also not a fact but an opinion. Time will indeed tell.

Menlo Park Library parking varies much from time to time. I have often found that all parking places were occupied. One shhould not spot check and draw conclusions about adequacy.

Just got back from the library and Ms. Ekers was probably trying to put a good spin on it but she's in dreamland. In the middle of an off-peak weekday afternoon before school lets out there was nary a parking space to be had. So what can a patron do? Can't park at Burgess -- that's always packed. Can't park on the street. So does one parachute down from a hovering helicopter? Perhaps the librarians can stand on the curb and throw you books as you drive past. If there's already a problem with accommodating library patrons, how in the world will gym patrons manage? I'm all for improving improved facilities, but what good is the effort if the facilities are inaccessible? Planning is a lot more valuable than good intentions.

Some clarity on how many spaces are being removed and added:

17 will be removed to make way for the new gym.
14 will be added as part of the project currently under way.
10 to 20 will be freed up by moving employee vehicles to other lots, according to the city.

Based on the city's numbers, that's a net of between 7 and 17 additional spaces available to visitors.

Apparently a lot of spaces are taken up by train commuters who don't want to have to pay $3/day to park in the train lot. If police started ticketing people who are in the library lot >4 hours, you'd see a lot more free spaces.

I agree, though, the new gym is going to put a ridiculous stress on that lot. I usually park in the lot on Laurel closest to Ravenswood -- easy access to the library.

I hope the city trims bushes in the parking lot. They are so overgrown that it is impossible to see pedestrians. I worry constantly about little children darting out and leaving no time for drivers to react. While I do drive extra carefully, I know others do not. The city can help a lot by trimming the bushes so it's easier to see around corners and through the lower limbs of the bushes.