If you park downtown, it may have appeared as though there are more police officers out on foot, monitoring parking. However, that is not the case. In response to citizen communication, Castle Rock Police are being encouraged to have more of a presence in the community, while also responding to business feedback.
“We try to encourage our officers to get out of the car and into the community,” commented Police Chief Jack Cauley. Being out on the streets downtown not only helps them to get to know residents and owners by name, it also lets them keep an eye out for violations of the law they might not catch from only driving around Town in their vehicle.
Police are also trying to help downtown businesses monitor posted, two-hour parking more closely. When the limited parking in front of storefronts is being taken for extended periods of time, it poses a big problem for getting new customers in the door. “We have heard from business owners that cars are parking too long in the two-hour parking,” Cauley said.
Though sometimes it’s not just the patrons that are camping in the spots, employees sometimes take them too, in hopes that they don’t get ticketed. “Employees are sometimes parking there, when the spaces are actually meant for customers,” Cauley continued, “It’s about education. We try to talk to the business owner about employees and parking options.”
So until we get more parking downtown, it’s best to be mindful of the two-hour limit, to avoid finding a parking ticket tucked in your windshield wiper.
