A group of downtown businesses that are part of what’s known as the Parking and Business Improvement Area approached the City Council this week about the free parking, and the council concurred.
“Our objective is to increase activity in downtown by making parking free through the holiday season,” said Keith Stahley, the city’s director of Community Planning and Development.
The free parking starts Monday, he said, and includes all weekdays leading up to Christmas. Weekends are always free, and Dec. 26 is a city holiday this year because Christmas lands on a Sunday.
“I’m delighted at the city’s holiday gift to those who want to shop and support local business downtown,” said Ken Adney, chairman of the Parking and Business Improvement Area.
Adney won’t benefit from the free parking. His business, Furniture Works, is at 402 Washington St. N.E., and on-street parking there is served by traditional coin meters.
Only areas served by the new parking pay stations, which were installed this year, are eligible. That’s about 225 parking spots downtown, Stahley said. Parking rules will be enforced, and cars parked longer than two hours will be ticketed.
The city is asking downtown employees not to park in the free spots so shoppers can use them. One of the reasons the city put pay stations downtown was to discourage employees from tying up spots.
Stahley said the city will lose about $10,000 as a result of offering free parking.
“It’ll affect the budget somewhat, but our parking budget is in good shape both in a revenue perspective and in an expense perspective, so we’ll finish the year in the black,” he said.
Multiple businesses have complained that the pay stations are harming their business, and customers have complained that they’re difficult to use. The city installed signs explaining how to use the machines, and complaints have dropped significantly, Stahley said.
The city also is relocating two pay stations from the west end of Fourth Avenue to Capitol Way to two busiest blocks on Capitol Way.
Adney said business is not so much down because of the machines as it is “just down period,” and businesses need all the support they can get.
The Olympia Downtown Association is helping to get the word out about the free parking. There also are other incentives; choirs from Olympia and Black Hills high schools will be caroling downtown today, said Vida Zvirzdys-Farler, event and volunteer coordinator. Next Saturday, a choir from River Ridge High School will sing carols.
“We just want too thank them for shopping local,” she said.
Matt Batcheldor: 360-704-6869
mbatcheldor@theolympian.com
