Downtown Santa Barbara has a lot of free parking. Parking garages and street parking currently offer 75 minutes to 90 minutes of subsidized parking. But now, that could change as the city’s parking fund is facing a large deficit, according to public works officials.
One change being considered by city staff is shortening free parking periods or eliminating them.
Store attendant Darcy Mcelroy says that would affect customer behavior.
"If customers are parked in a shorter time spot, say 15 minutes, they will rush in and then a lot of times leave saying they will come back but they don’t, so we lose business that way," Mcelroy said.
According to city officials, most visits to the city’s 10 parking lots and five garages are less than 75 minutes. But Santa Barbara resident Angela Vazquez says she has trouble parking downtown because of limited street parking.
"Parking on the street is never available so you have to go park in a public lot and walk three or four blocks to get to your destination," Vazquez said.
Fees collected from parking help fund repairs, plaza maintenance, downtown ambassadors, and a host of other city services, but Vasquez thinks that if the city reduces free parking times in downtown, things will get, "More chaotic!"
There are no changes in the works just yet. The 2025 fiscal budget and proposed changes will be discussed at the Downtown Parking Committee’s budget meeting on February 8, 2024.
