HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/7/2023 Item 6a, Smeehuyzen
From:Meaghan Smeehuyzen <
To:E-mail Council Website
Subject:Support Downtown Businesses with Reasonable Parking Rates
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Good evening SLO City Council,
I'm writing this evening to request a review of the city's recent downtown parking rate hikes. I am a weekly (or more)
visitor to downtown SLO businesses and have felt the price spike on parking rates personally. $1.35 to park at a metered
spot for 15 minutes, just to run into a store or restaurant to pick up an order? And nearly $7 for parking to enjoy a
dinner out? That is simply ludicrous and in no way supports the small local businesses the city claims to champion. We
are a small town facing already historic cost of living challenges and dozens of downtown storefronts sit empty. If
anything, I would hope that the city would reduce parking fees to help incentivize downtown business activity. We do
not have the luxury of inflated salaries like the Bay Area (who charges $7 an hour for many metered areas) so it does not
make sense that our parking rates are even in the same ballpark.
I recently saw that there is a Park Local pilot program. This program has been poorly marketed/advertised (I googled it
after seeing that we no longer have complimentary one hour parking at garages), is complicated to register for, and is
restricted to one location.
I appreciate the council's work to better our community and hope you take this feedback under consideration.
Kindly,
Meaghan Smeehuyzen
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