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Ashland committee tackles parking, traffic ASHLAND -- They're two of Ashland residents' favorite things to complain about: traffic and parking. Now, with the formation of an official city committee to study the issue, Ashlanders will have several opportunities to tell the town's movers and shakers just what the problems are and what they can do about them. The committee -- made up of representatives from the Chamber of Commerce, Southern Oregon University, Ashland Community Hospital, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Rogue Valley Transportation District, the school district, City Council and Highway 66 business district -- holds its initial meeting today to begin planning six neighborhood meetings and a public forum. The meetings will focus on three problem areas: the downtown, the hospital and the area around the university and high school. City Administrator Mike Freeman said during the initial meetings, people who live or work in these areas will be asked to identify problems in their own neighborhoods as well as citywide. Participants also will be asked to brainstorm strategies to address the problems. The information will be digested by the committee and presented back to residents for comments. Organizers hope to have a proposal to present to the City Council for consideration by July. The impetus behind the transportation, transit and parking committee began two years ago when the Chamber of Commerce began to look at parking issues. That effort soon expanded to look at the larger issues of transportation, said Chamber director Sandra Slattery. The chamber committee conducted surveys of the business community, tourists and residents. Last summer, they brought in a parking official from Aspen, Colo., to discuss the pros and cons of that city's parking system, which incorporates paid parking, extra parking lots, park-and-ride lots and permits in residential zones. The system provided funding for mass transit. Slattery said the committee has discussed a parking structure for the downtown and expanding the use of school buses when they aren't in use by schools. Freeman emphasized that the entire effort is rooted in the city's transportation plan, which places a priority on alternative modes of transportation and pedestrian needs. Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA