A recommendation by the Town of Farmville Infrastructure Committee to implement fees for eight parking spaces to be used by Third Street Brewing resulted in a discussion about the town-owned parking lot, located by the brewery that provides parking for several different organizations.

Tom Pairet, at-large councilmember, said during the Farmville Town Council work session Wednesday that the committee had a lengthy discussion about the gravel parking lot adjacent to Third Street Brewing on 312 W. Third St.

“The Infrastructure Committee feels that at present time that we need to go ahead and implement the eight parking places required by the brewery to take effect immediately at $25 per space per month,” Pairet said. He noted that at a later time, Town Manager Gerald Spates would potentially contact a land designer to give a conceptual plan of the parking lot that could be brought back to the council.

The established rate for renting parking spaces in town is $25 per space, per month, Ward E councilmember J. J. “Jamie” Davis said in an email Wednesday.

Complications with the parking lot arose due to the various locations that use the lot, Spates said.

“You have four entities vying for that parking lot,” Spates said. “You’ve got (the Farmville Immigration Centers of America) ICA across the street, you’ve got the brewery, you’ve got the train station and you have the (High Bridge State Park) trail.”

Davis said the different organizations have made the parking issue difficult to solve.

“You would think that something would be such a quick, simple fix but over there, it isn’t because of several different dynamics with all of the other parking issues with the other entities,” Davis said, noting that the town would need to hold parking for patrons of the train station.

He also noted that the lot is also used by commuter students at Longwood University.

Ward D councilmember Donald Hunter suggested having representatives from the different organizations meet to discuss how to best delineate the parking.

Hunter said the solution to provide eight parking spaces for the brewery would not solve the existing issues with parking at the Farmville Train Station. He said when events are held, people have to park way ahead of the building.

“I think you’re just putting a Band-Aid on a problem,” Hunter said. “I don’t think that’s going to fix what the overall problem is.”

Hunter said taking a measure to address the issues associated with the lot would prevent frustration for patrons who use the train station.

“I’m just trying to get ahead of it,” Hunter said.

“It’s the town’s parking lot, and we need to control it,” Spates said.

Pariet recommended that the council wait until it receives an estimate from the land designer about renovating the parking area to addresses other issues.

“This is not a finished deal by any means,” Pairet said. “Until we can get it dressed up, cleaned up and ready to go, it’s not really enforceable because it’s a unmarked gravel parking lot.”

“I agree, we need to take care of Third Street Brewing,” Hunter said. “But for the long haul, we need something else.”

The discussion for the parking lot will continue during the council’s May 9 meeting, Davis said in an email Wednesday.