Hourly paid parking set to rise 25% in HRM
Regional council says increase is a result of 2023-2024 budget considerations
Pay station parking will increase by 25 per cent, or by up to 75 cents per hour, on May 29 across the Halifax Regional Municipality.
The HRM said in a press release Tuesday that the increase is a result of 2023-2024 budget considerations and is motivated by the goals of the municipality's integrated mobility plan.
Because the decision is part of regional council's approved budget, there are no opportunities for public engagement on the move.
Halifax passed a record-high $1.2 billion municipal budget in April, with taxes rising to pay for major projects and city services. But a controversial move to bring in paid Saturday parking was reversed.
Business owners and advocates told the city's budget committee that paid Saturday parking would further deter customers — many of whom already think there's too little parking — from coming downtown.
Jeff Nephew, the team lead in parking services for HRM, said the pending increase is separate from the proposal to boost parking prices on Saturdays.
"This was scheduled to go forward regardless of whether the Saturday parking was adopted or not," he said.
The increase is a way for the municipality to generate money without increasing taxes further, he said.
"We definitely understand that it's a trying time for everybody and costs are going up in different areas of people's budgets," Nephew said.
But he hopes the new parking rates will encourage people to choose alternative forms of transportation, he said.
At the public hearing in April for the proposed paid parking on Saturdays, business owners said the increased rates would take away from the vibrant culture downtown.
But Nephew doesn't believe the increase will deter people from visiting the area, or using any of the paid parking zones in HRM.
The increase is the "right rate for parking," according to data the municipality has been collecting, he said.
"I don't necessarily think that keeping parking is what makes a downtown vibrant," he said.
Instead, he said the increased rates will contribute to the vibrancy of the city by making sure parking is "available for people who want to pay."
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