The conversion of retail space at the Pelissier Street parking garage will go ahead.
Council voted 7-4 to convert the retail space into another 43 parking spaces during a marathon meeting that lasted well after Midnight Wednesday.
Council made its decision despite numerous pleas from a long list of delegates to save the retail space or sell the parking garage to private business.
Downtown Windsor BIA Chair Larry Horwitz says he is “extremely disappointed” of Council’s decision, calling it “a major step backwards.”
"Council has failed us. The mayor has failed us. They've done something that sets back downtown,” says Horwitz.
Horwitz claims it’s another decision by Council that hurts the downtown core, such as the decision to move the Windsor arena to the City’s east end.
"We're getting a smaller and smaller downtown,” says Horwitz. “In the end we're going to have nowhere for new businesses to go.”
The decision to convert the retail space into additional parking will cost nearly $800,000, a lot higher than the original estimated cost. The money will come from the capital budget and the off street parking reserve fund.
The issue has been contentiously debated since November 2016 when Council first voted to remove the retail space. It ultimately forced Youssef Hair Design and Pride Windsor to relocate.
