Middletown Officials Close Court Street Parking Structure’s Lower Level

Dec. 03--MIDDLETOWN -- The city has closed the lower level of the parking structure behind Superior Court building until repairs can be made to avoid damage to vehicles.

Parking Director Geen Thazhampallath said some city and police vehicles will remain in the lower level of the "parking arcade," but people with monthly parking passes have been moved to the upper level.

The common council on Nov. 4 approved an appropriation of $125,000 to fund resurfacing and weatherproofing to stop leaks from the upper level that are resulting in damage to cars on the lower level. In at least one case, a chunk of concrete fell on a car parked in the lower level. But most of the insurance claims against the city have stemmed from vehicles' paint being damaged by a mix of stormwater and concrete.

Council members are calling for the prompt closure and demolition of the structure as insurance claims mount. The repairs are intended to remove a safety risk and give the city time to plan for a new garage, to be funded by nearly $7 million in federal money that could be used toward the project's costs.

Thazhampallath said an architectural firm is planning the repairs, but work will not begin until the spring of 2014.

"This is step one in what could be a very long process, but we're starting to confront the very real issues that are coming," he said. "Until we can do that we're better off from a public safety standpoint closing it off to the general public."

Prior to the closure at the end of November, more than 40 of the 185 parking spaces in the lower level had already been blocked off due to known leaks.

Thazhampallath said the city is in talks with the state to allow city hall employees to park in the courthouse garage. The change in location would be one part of what he called "a large game of musical chairs" caused by the loss of 185 parking spaces.

"We're trying to make it work for every constituency," Thazhampallath said.

The city has been eyeing a new garage on the Court Street site for several years as parking demand has increased and the arcade has begun to deteriorate. Costs have for a new parking garage have been estimated at between $11 million and $12 million.

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