Back to SearchIn an effort to ensure parking is available for businesses as they reopen downtown, and employees returning to work, paid parking will return to the city core next month.
During its most recent meeting, City Council approved reinstating paid parking after a three-month hiatus in charging drivers for spaces on streets, off-street lots and garages.
As businesses reopen, drawing both visitors and employees downtown, demand for parking, most notably convenient on-street spaces, will continue to increase. A return to paid parking and enforcement will drive turnover at these spaces ensuring parking is available for those that need it.
Paid parking for all City designated on-street spaces, off-street lots and parking garages will resume July 1, 2020. To ensure drivers are not caught unaware by the change the City will undertake an education campaign in the weeks to come via its social media channels, online publications, stakeholder engagement and distribution of information cards to cars parked downtown.
“While the temporary hiatus in paid parking may have been a benefit to some residents we are starting to see a need for spaces once again downtown, businesses are reopening, and with them shoppers are returning, employees are once again driving downtown to work,” said Manager of Revenue Lisa Read, adding, “with demand increasing bringing regular parking operations back online is critical in ensuring there are spaces for those who need them as we work to rebuild our local economy in the wake of COVID-19.”
To further support businesses the City is continuing its free curbside pickup program, providing free 15-minute parking for individuals accessing local businesses via pickup or takeout. The marked spaces are located at more than 20 existing loading zones in the downtown, Port Dalhousie and on Facer Street.
Those wishing to use a contactless method of payment can use the Honk mobile app to pay for parking at lots and on-street spaces. The app is available via the Google Play and Apple App Store. For more information, visit www.honkmobile.com.
Monthly permit holders for garages will see their automatic payments resume on July 1, 2020. Those wishing to cancel payments must contact the City by calling 905.688.5600 no later than June 29 to halt payment. Those who halt payment will forfeit their parking space and will be placed back on the waitlist for any future permits.
The move to resume enforcement of paid parking is hoped to alleviate some of the impact of COVID-19 on City taxpayers. With the City moving to offset the financial impact of COVID-19 on its revenues and tax base, resumption of paid parking will mean parking system users, rather than taxpayers, will bare the cost of the parking system and enforcement.
For more information on parking visit www.stcatharines.ca/Parking.
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