Staff Writer

A vote may be all it takes to close the doors of a restaurant built on the flip of a coin.

Sisters Elaine Riley and Linda Gibson run the Creamery coffee shop on Alfred Road in West Kennebunk and fear a new plan to cut parking spaces in front of the shop will ruin their business.

“I don’t feel it’s going to survive. We survived two downturns in the economy, this last one almost did it, but we’re Mainers, we did what we needed to do to survive. There’s nothing we can do to survive parallel parking,” Riley said.

Selectmen last Tuesday rejected a plan from the town engineer, Chris Osterrieder, to add a bicycle lane and new parallel parking in front of the Creamery and post office.

Osterrieder estimated the parking area on the road’s right-of-way in front of the Creamery, post office and old Cummings Market would be reduced approximately 40 percent to 14 parallel parking spaces. The area currently accommodates 21 vehicles. 

Creamery patrons are concerned they won’t find spaces to park when they visit the coffee shop in the morning, as they have done since it first opened in 1994. Patrons also say the inconvenience of parallel parking will force them to find another place to spend their money.

“One of the beauties of West Kennebunk is the little businesses like this. It’s a shame to have change,” said Gordon Paul, who for the past 10 years has visited the Creamery every day on his way to work. “I probably definitely will not come in. Parking is convenient for me set up the way it is now.”

Paul isn’t the only long-time customer who said they wouldn’t stop at the shop if parking changes and nearby spaces are limited.

“I’ve been coming in every day for more than five years and spend about half an hour in here, but not if I can’t park,” said Barbara Maling, another Creamery regular.

“I think they’d frown on it if I just stopped in the middle of the road and put my four-ways on,” joked David Hicks, who has been coming to the Creamery every weekday for the past five years.

Two public hearings have already been held in West Kennebunk for citizens to voice opinions on the new road plan and offer suggestions to make it more palatable.

During the July 13 meeting, Osterrieder presented a preliminary plan that still included parallel parking, much to the chagrin of the audience.

He said sidewalks on the south side of the street and the bike path would have to be eliminated to keep parking similar to its current configuration.

“I wonder if it has an adverse effect when we’re trying to have businesses in the area. Without that land what do we say to a prospective business?” said Selectman Bob Higgins.

Osterrieder admitted the parallel parking would decrease the level of service in the area, but it would increase the safety of pedestrians and cars pulling out from parking spots.

Riley’s fears that with her prices – $2.20 for a large cup of coffee and $2.65 for a homemade breakfast sandwich –  even a slight customer decline could leave the business bankrupt.

“It takes a lot of people to keep a shop going like that. If I lose even 15 customers, that will be it,” Riley said.

The post office also has issues with a parking change.

“Please be advised we are satisfied with the current parking situation. We do not wish to experience the proposed changes to the existing conditions,” wrote Christopher Madden, a contracting officer for the United States Postal Service. “Said another way, we are opposed to changing the parking situation as it now exists.”

Riley has owned the building that now houses the Creamery for 18 years. For the first two years Riley lived on the second floor, but after months of debate between the sisters on whether to turn the garage into a coffee shop, a coin flip decided their fate.

“It was 50-50. So we flipped a coin, heads we would open the shop,” Riley said.

Thirty days later, the Creamery opened. Sixteen years after that, Riley sent an e-mail to Town Manager Barry Tibbetts to ask what paperwork would be required to close the shop.

“That’s how confident I am we’ll close if the parking changes,” Riley said.

Osterrieder presented his proposal during a second public hearing in West Kennebunk. The West Kennebunk Committee unanimously approved the plan with the parking change.

Osterrieder said he tried to design a plan with angle parking, but decided it wouldn’t work in evening hours when cars pull out of the Creamery and post office spaces into heavy traffic.

Tibbetts said during the interim he will look into town-owned property in the area that could possibly be used for parking.

No parking is allowed behind the Creamery because of a septic tank and leach field in Riley’s backyard.

Several customers at the coffee shop said West Kennebunk residents believe Alfred Road needs to be improved.

Osterrieder said reconstructing the road to address road surface and drainage concerns would cost the town $750,000.

The town has $250,000 to spend on the project, including an $80,000 grant from the Department of Transportation.

Tibbetts said the grant is for completion of a bike lane and sidewalks.

One of the conditions of the grant is a signature from the town engineer. Osterrieder said he would not sign a plan he does not feel is safe.

Voters approved another $107,000 for sidewalks on Alfred or Thompson roads in November 2009. The sidewalk on Thompson Road already has been completed without using the money, leaving it in hand for parts of the Alfred Road project.

A vote on the plan has been tabled until September, when board members hope to have a cost estimate.

Staff Writer Suzanne Hodgson can be reached at 282-4337, ext. 233.