Idea of naming lots after fish gets officials thinking

Would you remember where you parked better if the lot was called the Chinook Lot?

That’s a question being considered by the Port Washington Traffic Safety Committee.

The proposal to name the city’s public parking lots following specific themes, perhaps with the names of fish found off the city’s shore, was recommended by Port Main Street Inc. as an attempt to bring visibility to the lots and differentiate between public and private spaces, as well as create unique areas in downtown, Bob Harris, the city’s director of planning and development, told the committee.

“It is branding and marketing downtown,” he said.

Each lot, he said, would have signage and a sculpture to set it off from the others.

“It would be a little bit public art, a little bit wayfinding and downtown marketing,” Harris said.

There are five public lots identified for the project, he noted.

City Engineer Roger Strohm said the proposal had been reviewed by the city and county emergency services, and no concerns were expressed.

“In fact, there was support for the naming project as it may benefit dispatch if callers simple refer to the ‘Perch Lot’ rather than ‘the parking lot behind the main street,” he said in a memo to the committee.

Ald. Dan Benning, a member of the committee, said he likes the idea of naming the lots.

“The less complicated the better,” Benning said. “But I don’t know how I feel about fish names. Unless I’m a fisherman, I don’t know what a chinook is. I barely know how to say it.”

Ald. Mike Gasper, a member of the committee, said a descriptive name might be best, while Fire Chief Joe DeBoer said designating each lot with a letter of the alphabet might be easiest for people to remember.

The matter is expected to be discussed again when the committee meets on July 27.