Saturday parklet event worthy of a repeat

Stockings were hung by the chimney with care as Santa Claus greeted downtown visitors and inviting bar stools beckoned weary shoppers outside the M & H Tavern. Children were able to write their very own holiday present requests and mail them to jolly old Saint Nick at a festively decorated letter writing station outside the Music Tree. Passersby were encouraged to demo a bicycle and other fitness items at a display sponsored by the City’s Centennial Recreation Center.
These were some of the dozen “downtown street scenes” adorning Monterey Road in downtown Morgan Hill Saturday. The one-day parklet trial, hosted by the City and the Morgan Hill Downtown Association, turned two blocks of parking spaces in one of the busiest sections of the downtown corridor into a variety of entertaining, relaxing and lively scenes.
The “interactive” event was a “test” of how a future new Monterey Road streetscape, perhaps with extended sidewalks, might accommodate parklets on a permanent or more regular basis, according to MHDA office manager Raquel Crowell. She said the downtown will try to host another one-day parklet test in the future, possibly next spring or summer.
Crowell added that several downtown businesses reported increased shopping traffic during the event, though it’s unknown if that spike in activity was due to the parklets or the fact that Saturday was designated as Small Business Saturday, a nationwide counter to Black Friday to kick off winter shopping with independent retailers instead of big-box stores.
Teresa Glover, bartender at M & H Tavern at 17365 Monterey Road, helped fabricate a fireplace and lounge display for co-worker Bob Allman, dressed as Santa Claus, to beckon visitors. The Tavern’s street scene also offered coffee, hot chocolate and candy to passersby of all ages.
Glover said there appeared to be more people downtown than on a typical Saturday, including motorists who stopped by just to check out the activity.
“There was definitely a curiosity factor,” Glover said. “I think (parklets) can be a valuable tool to get people downtown, but if they overdo it it’s going to lose its magic. I think it’s worth it to bring people down to the community.”
She added that future parklet events could stand to add a charitable factor, perhaps with a toy or food drive. Also, future parklets on the busy section of Monterey Road should be more secure from passing automobile traffic for safety reasons, Glover added.
Morgan Hill Economic Development Manager Edith Ramirez said she noticed that some of the downtown stores that normally close by late Saturday afternoon remained open later during the parklet event, which was “fabulous” for customers. She said City staff is “excited” about the outcome of Saturday’s downtown scenes.
“There was this sense of community of all the businesses coming together,” Ramirez said. “The response from the businesses was bigger and better than expected, and the quality of the downtown scenes was better than what we were expecting.”
She added that the event has fueled the ongoing discussion in Morgan Hill on “how the downtown can function,” and she too expects the City to promote future parklet events.