Shepherdstown Business Association President Meredith Wait said when it comes to a discussion surrounding parking, it can definitely be a hot-button issue for many business owners.

“This is one of the reasons I’ve been SBA president,” Wait said. “I think one of the most difficult things we’re facing as a community is parking.”

As we at The Chronicle stated in last week’s editorial, this goes beyond a parking problem. It is an economic issue for businesses and a quality of life issue for residents.

But the major roadblock here is funding to put a parking garage in place at Shepherd University to free up parking downtown for residents and their guests and patrons of downtown businesses.

How does a university, which falls at the bottom of the state legislature’s list in terms of allocations for operational budgets, fund a $10-million garage?

Yes, as a university grows its facilities should, too. So let’s put our heads together and find where that money can come from. Let’s maintain that symbiotic relationship between the town and the university and continue to work together, like Wait has for the past two decades as she has worked on this issue.

Resident and Town Councilor David Rosen has started a Facebook group, “Shepherd University/Shepherdstown Needs a Parking Garage,” which includes information about how to contact local and state officials as well as serves as a forum on the issue.