Spa City Once Again Welcomes All Motorists to Park Free on Its Lots
“Pay To Park” signs were removed from the brick-face entryway at the Woodlawn Ave. garage; This standing meter is soon to follow. Photo by Thomas Dimopoulos Sept. 3, 2024.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — The “Pay To Park” signs have been removed and the standing meters soon to follow with the conclusion of the Spa City’s first seasonal paid parking program.
The $2 per hour to park plan involved several city-owned garages and surface lots and offered city residents and downtown businesses free parking permits. Those residing outside Saratoga Springs were required to pay for parking in the garages and atop the lots.
The pay stations were unanimously approved by the City Council in April, and installed and implemented into service in mid-June, with a post-Labor Day Weekend conclusion date.
An initial plan – titled the “tourism parking” program – proposed converting more than 1,300 on-street and nearly 800 garage parking spaces into either “permit” or “paid” spots for a five-month run annually between May and September. That proposal was scaled back to involve city-owned garages and surface lots only, with all on-street parking remaining unchanged.
When it approved the plan in April, the city reported it anticipated nearly $1.6 million as first-year estimated revenue, with about $450,000 in expenses.
In mid-July, roughly one month into operation, the city announced it had to that point generated approximately $82,000 in new revenue, and issued just over 11,250 “free” parking permits. Updated revenue amounts have yet to be announced.
The city’s Public Works and Public Safety departments collaborated to get the plan up and running. Its initial year concluded, it is expected the program will be evaluated regarding its effectiveness and for any potential changes deemed need to be made prior to 2025.