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***image1***On just about any day of the week Ramstein Commissary Store Director Harry Nichols can stand in front of the store and watch people drive in circles, in search of a parking spot.
There are 220 parking spots at the store and more than 87,000 commissary customers each month will do the parking circle dance. It has Mr. Nichols making a public plea to KMC motorists: “If you are not shopping at the commissary, please don’t park there.”
Seems like a reasonable request. But, people tend to meet at the commissary for trips, leaving cars parked there overnight or over a weekend, he said. They park at the commissary when they go to the base exchange to shop or work. And, Ramstein school teachers, who were told they could park in the north end of the commissary parking lot nearest to the schools, spill over into the first few rows at the front of the commissary parking lot.
“It’s an ongoing problem, and it’s getting worse,” Mr. Nichols said.
Mr. Nichols has proposed that the 435th Civil Engineer Group put a two-hour limit on the parking slots in front of the commissary parking lot.
“We’d like that to be a ticketed spot,” he said.
Ramstein Commissary has the largest sales volume of any overseas commissary. Each month they sell about $3.7 million in goods.
“That tells you that this is a busy commissary,” Mr. Nichols said.
Meanwhile, here are some parking tips:
• If you do not intend to shop at the commissary and are only going to the base exchange or food court, park in one of the AAFES lots.
• If you work for AAFES please park your vehicle at the end of the large east BX parking lot and not in the commissary lot.
• If you are meeting someone to share a ride, do not meet in the commissary parking lot and leave one or more cars in the lot. Meet at the end of the large BX East lot. Also, do not leave your car in the commissary parking lot when you leave for a tour or trip. Use one of the lots mentioned above.
• If possible find a shopping buddy and car pool when making trips to the commissary.
• The Ramstein teachers and teacher’s aides who use the north commissary parking lot should car pool when possible to reduce the vast number of cars tying up commissary parking spots.
• If you live on base, and it is possible, walk to the commissary.
