Ongoing Overnight Parking Issues
Larimer.org
This form was submitted on Thursday, July 6, 2023 - 2:51pm from https://www.larimer.gov/bocc.
My name is Kristi and I am the new owner of Signarama here in Fort Collins. Signarama is located at 1600 E Mulberry St., Unit 2 and has been in business for over 26 years, 18 of which have been at the address listed above. In the 5 years I have been at the business working, parking has been an ongoing issue. I am not referring to parking in our lot or even near our building, it's the parking on the street (frontage road by Mulberry) that is the problem. We are currently a business of 6 people, 4 of which are women. The overnight camping and "living" situations are not only an eye sore and health hazard, but a safety hazard. I am looking for your help and guidance in having no overnight parking signs installed. Can you please reach out to let us know what we can do to make our work space cleaner and safer?
Have a great day and I will look forward to hearing from you soon. You can reach me in my office Monday - Friday from 9-5. Thank you in advance for your help in this matter.
John Kefalas
 | John Kefalas County Commissioner, District 1 |
Commissioners' Office 200 W Oak St | 2nd Floor PO Box 1190, Fort Collins, CO 80522-1190 Cell: (720) 254-7598 |
Kristi Conde
Hi John,
Thank you for getting back to me in such a timely manner. I am cc’ing my business partner here as well.
I am very familiar with the project you are referring to down by the Super 8 motel. I worked diligently with VetLine to get their signs up and I was kept in the loop by Dave and the other guys down there.
I apologize for not starting with this, but I did call the county multiple times. I first called Monday 3 July when my employees and I noticed that someone had dumped what appeared to be a camper top for a truck and a ton of other items onto the frontage road directly in front of our building. The woman I spoke to at the County office said she wasn’t sure if it was the county or cities job to clean up, but she would find out.
Fast forward to the next week, where I noticed someone was crawling in and out of said pile of items. I called LCOS again and updated them on the situation. An officer came out and said he could only write the guy a ticket for the littering but couldn’t ask him to move. I was floored by that. While I don’t understand the legalities, I cannot believe this is allowed. The individual isn’t even in a camper. He’s literally on the ground with a camper top over him. Moreover, we have experienced incidents where said person has gained access to our dumpsters during the times when our business is closed. They have been rummaging through the discarded materials, including misprints and past projects that we have thrown away. While we empathize with the challenges faced by individuals experiencing homelessness, this unauthorized activity raises significant concerns related to privacy, security, and the integrity of our business operations.
While I understand people go through hard times and experience homelessness, I also am very aware of the multiple options available for said individuals to go, for example, mission house. As stated previously, I feel it is unsafe for people, no matter what, to be “living” next to such a busy highway. Furthermore, it has caused a deteriorating Image for our business. The sight of a makeshift dwelling in front of our store sends a negative message to customers and potential clients. It raises concerns about safety, cleanliness, and professionalism, which directly impact our business reputation.
Basically, this is why I’m reaching out to you. Can I put signs out front? How to do keep this from happening and how is it legal for people to live literally on the street?
Kristi Jenkins-Correa
Owner
Signarama Fort Collins
1600 E. Mulberry St., Unit 2
Fort Collins, CO 80524
Office 970-204-1805
John Kefalas
| John Kefalas County Commissioner, District 1 |
Commissioners' Office 200 W Oak St | 2nd Floor PO Box 1190, Fort Collins, CO 80522-1190 Cell: (720) 254-7598 |
Ian Stewart
From: Joseph Shellhammer <shel...@co.larimer.co.us>
Date: Wed, Jul 12, 2023 at 6:27 AM
Subject: Fwd: Ongoing Overnight Parking Issues
To: Jamie Smith <smi...@co.larimer.co.us>
Cc: Ian Stewart <stew...@co.larimer.co.us>
From: John Kefalas <kefa...@co.larimer.co.us>
Date: Tue, Jul 11, 2023, 4:03 PM
Subject: Fwd: Ongoing Overnight Parking Issues
To: Joseph Shellhammer <shel...@co.larimer.co.us>
| John Kefalas County Commissioner, District 1 |
Commissioners' Office 200 W Oak St | 2nd Floor PO Box 1190, Fort Collins, CO 80522-1190 Cell: (720) 254-7598 |
Ian Stewart
Good morning Captain Smith,Thank you very much for this prompt and effective response to the situation impacting Kristi Jenkins-Correa and her Signarama business. She also reported to me that the the conversations with Lt. Smith and your team went well, and she was very grateful. Take good care and be safe out there.