City council voted Monday to expand its support for the upcoming Yukoner Appreciation Day by providing more free parking.

City administration was recommending the request for additional free parking from the Whitehorse Chamber of Commerce be rejected, as it would strain budgetary resources of the Planning and Sustainability Services Department.

Administration told council last week the request was to expand non-enforcement of metered parking from Main Street to include Steele and Elliott streets for the day.

Mike Pemberton, the chair of the Whitehorse chamber, appeared before council Monday to correct the record and encourage council to continue supporting what is a primary tool to promote local purchasing.

The chamber’s request is not for non-enforcement on Steele and Elliott, he said. Pemberton said the request is to expand the non-enforcement to include Third Avenue between Steele and Main and Elliott and Main.

“This event supports the chamber’s mandate to promote ‘buy Local’ on behalf of chamber membership and the business community as a whole,” he told council.

“There are countless benefits when consumers buy local; buying local stimulates our economy, creates jobs and provides direct service to customers and supports our community – local businesses give back to our sports teams, NGOs, and arts and cultural programs.”

Yukoner Appreciation Day is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 1.

It involves downtown merchants offering sales and promotional items. There’s a passport contest where the names of customers who acquire stamps from individual businesses have an opportunity to win prizes.

The chamber has also requested the city turn on its Christmas lights for the evening of that day.

The chamber president pointed out to council appreciation day was started by Main Street businesses many years ago.

When the chamber took it over in 2015 as a means of promoting buying local, 35 businesses participated, Pemberton said. He said there will be 63, representing an increase of almost 100 per cent in four years.

Pemberton said the chamber doesn’t view free parking as a loss of revenue to the city, but rather an investment in the continued success of Yukoner Appreciation Day.

“Many municipalities struggle with the impact of the degradation of their core shopping district,” he said.

“We are very fortunate to have a vibrant, strong, downtown core that continues to attract new business, local shoppers and tourists.”

Pemberton said the chamber considers Yukoner Appreciation Day as one of the largest shopping events of the year. He estimated 2,500 local shoppers and shoppers from the communities took advantage of the sales and promotions last year.

In its report to city council last week, administration noted the cost to the city of providing free parking on Main Street for the day was estimated at $4,700.

Expanding it to Elliot and Steele would raise the contribution to $14,100, or beyond the ability of the planning department to absorb in its budget, council was told.

Administration pointed out the chamber had been asked to apply for support under a different funding program which could accommodate the larger budget request.

Members of council did challenge the math last week.

At Monday’s meeting, Coun. Dan Boyd pulled out the calculator and offered up some quick calculations. He estimated the lost revenue for offering the free parking on the two blocks along Third Avenue would be closer to an additional $600 for the day.

Following an amendment Monday night to the proposed motion, council voted to include free parking on Third Avenue, with a total cost to the city of $5,300.

Council was told city staff are working on having the Christmas lights turned on for the evening.

It was also noted that the city’s guiding principles say the purpose of metered parking is not to raise revenue but to ensure a turnover of parking spaces to provide customers with reasonable access to downtown shops.

There has been concern raised about how some people could use the free parking simply for convenience, with no intention of shopping.

Mayor Dan Curtis recalled that last year’s Yukoner Appreciation Day saw terrible weather, compounded by a power outage.

Nonetheless, he told his council colleagues, one merchant told him sales were so brisk that had they purchased a generator to deal with the outage, it would have paid for itself.

There is evidence across the country that shows the importance of maintaining a healthy downtown core, he said.

“If you do not have a vibrant downtown, you have a dying downtown.”