Downtown parking enforcement to begin Monday
Press release from City of Gainesville
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – New downtown parking rates, approved by the Gainesville City Commission this spring, will be enforced beginning Monday, Sept. 16.
During an educational grace period over the past few weeks, the City’s parking enforcement team has been helping familiarize drivers with the rates, pay stations, and area parking locations.
The new rates are designed to stimulate turnover of high-demand spaces in the heart of downtown as well as encourage drivers to find less expensive and long-term parking spaces farther away.
Downtown parking remains free on weekends and on City-observed holidays – except for spaces in the SW Parking Garage at 105 SW 3rd St.
New weekday rates include:
- $0.50/hour with a 2-hour time limit for on-street spaces in the center of downtown, weekdays
- $0.25/hour – or free – with no time limit outside the downtown core, weekdays
- $0.50/hour – or free – with no time limit for off-street lot parking, weekdays
- SW parking garage: $0.50/hour with no time limit. Permits available at monthly ($40) or quarterly ($100) rates
- Employees of downtown businesses may purchase a discounted monthly permit for the SW Parking Garage at $20/mo.
Five new solar-powered pay stations have been installed downtown; a sixth is located in the municipal parking garage. All pay stations will accept both coins and credit cards for parking in nearby downtown parking zones. Drivers also can pay for parking online, via the PassportParking® app or by calling 352-290-3700.
Visit gainesvillefl.gov/parking for an interactive map and additional information.
Is anyone addressing the safety concerns citizens feel using the SW Garage on weekend nights?
The city commission approved free tampons in men’s restrooms just a year or two ago…and you want them to actually address real issues?
Who cares about safety? Here is a hint, not me!!! Monday cannot get here fast enough, every since Big Daddy Eddy B has out played me and took GRU money away from me I can’t wait till Monday so I can get my hands on that parking money.
You aren’t drinking enough if you still care about safety. Do as the signs tell you – Sip ‘n Stroll – and you won’t worry.
Go get em GCC. Hogs at the trough destroying private enterprise and small businesses just like LGB and staff.
Yes but public lawyers and courts are still doing well. Maybe downtown will become an annex to the law skool?
Are there just 6 pay stations for all the parking requiring payment? Elderly and handicapped people might have some difficulty with the extra walking to pay for the parking. Are the meters at the parking spaces gone?
Not everyone has smart phones, or wants to have payment options on their phones. I sure don’t want to download an app just to be able to park.
This “solution” seems skewed to the tech savvy and healthy. Not very diverse of the GCC.
What a perverse incentive to those who might otherwise try to shop downtown, and an inappropriate barrier to those who are compelled to conduct business of some sort at one of the downtown gov’t offices.
Coins are accepted too, but you’re right you’d have to walk, unless the meters are next to Handicap spots? Too empathetic, shame on me 🙃
But-but-but….minorities are too marginalized/dimwitted to even acquire a Federally-approved ID to vote, but we all have the sophistication/motivation to use a smartphone to pay for parking.
They removed most of the meters but the filth and trash remain.
Shows where the City’s priorities are.
Check with the local gestapo, but I believe some parking is free for people who have handicap placards/tags.
How much does the App take, and is it based in another country?
The app takes 41 percent… that’s what I read.
The app takes 41%?
What happened to “if 10% is good enough for Jesus…?”
Leave it to a bunch of liberals to leave most of us with nothing to not much of anything.
I had dinner in Ocala a couple of weeks ago. Plentiful free parking (parking garage), well-lit, clean, zero homeless/panhandlers, happy normal people everywhere of all types. I will take a 30 minute ride down the road and a nice, safe, time. The ‘entertainment’ district of Gainesville has been ruined by short-sighted lefty mismanagement.
Yup! Same in Newberry, High Springs, Starke, Palatka, etc. Nice places to eat, easy and free parking.
Stupid move by the city. Should be free parking on streets with time limits enforced by a parking maid(s). This will seriously impact the downtown businesses.
Jazzman,
How dare you speak against my ruling on parking. Over the recent days I have considered bringing you into our fold. That is done now unless you repent, send a formal apology, and bring me a box of donutz. You know I am looking forward to this additional money especially since Big Daddy Eddy B. has kicked me out of the GRU cookie jar. You better not become one of these people who think that government is about the people, it is about the people that ruin, I mean run the government. Now good day.
Forget parking, how about enforcing anti-panhandling ordinances first?!
There is supposedly a law making it illegal to stand or stop on medians that are less than 6 feet wide, but almost every day of the week at rush hour you’ll find someone on the 1″ wide median strip on at University and 62nd Blvd right in front of the Burger King.
You will also find bums up and down Waldo road from 39th to University, and of course in the University & 13th St area.
I watch GPD drive right by these bums as they are teetering on these skinny little medians, pacing up and down menacing traffic. I sure don’t see the fake GRACE Marketplace “street team” ever interacting with these people.
Yup, here’s the law. Also against the city’s law is giving these people money.
https://library.municode.com/fl/gainesville/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTIICOOR_CH19PESOCA_ARTIIIBEPASO_S19-80BEPASOPUPRSISTCEDEPLPR