signs: Smitty's Bar

Smitty's Bar

I'm usually not out and about much in the evenings except when we go out to dinner. As much I'd like to get pictures of some of the great signs in Oakland lit up, when we're out to dinner I don't want to carry along my tripod and interrupt things with lots of picture taking.

But last night I had opportunity to be out at dusk, so I took my tripod and DSLR along Grand Avenue. I've posted about the great sign at The Alley before, but there are some other nice signs along Grand, too. First up is Smitty's bar, just a few doors up from The Alley. It's got two classic script neon signs, and the requisite martini glass.

Smitty's Bar

And just a quick side note on parking: according to the Tribune, councilmember Pat Kernighan is going to bring a proposal to rollback the extended parking hours from 8pm to the original 6pm. One of the complaints is that the increased hours, rates and enforcement are cutting down on business. However, I was on Grand from 7pm to after 8pm, and there were very few parking spots available, and while I was photographing, there was a decent turnover. According to UCLA urban planning professor Donald Shoup's formula, that suggests the parking rate is about right. It should be high enough to encourage turnover, but low enough that people can get their shopping or whatever done. Obviously this rate changes depending on demand, so that's why Oakland should implement demand-based rates for parking. There's no reason to charge the same rate in an area with lots of empty spots as in an area like Temescal or Grand Ave. where there's lots going on, and if an area is less busy at times of the day, make the parking cheaper.