RALEIGH, N.C. — Parking fines in downtown Raleigh are seeing a steep hike this weekend.
Some downtown Raleigh parking fines are increasing starting July 1. The city council recently approved fees in the Glenwood South area to jump from $30 to $200 during specific overnight hours.
The vote was seven to one in favor of the change, with some officials saying a $30 fine is not harsh enough to truly prevent illegal parking. However, one downtown Raleigh business owner believes that increase is too harsh and could have negative impacts.
As a small business owner, in the very city he was raised in, Brian Burnett often reflects on how he got started.
“So we focus on tailoring, bespoke suiting, custom suiting, bridal tailoring, and of course, wardrobe services,” Burnett, the owner of Glenwood South Tailors & Alterations, said. “It's been really, really cool. Like I said, October will be eight years. You know I started this with $4,000.”
Over the years he’s witnessed the city’s growth and the challenges that come with it.
“Especially being on the Glenwood South Neighborhood Collaborative board, we see how food and beverage sales are just skyrocketing. I mean, it's literally, this is the best business district,” Burnett said.
But he’s frustrated by the parking restrictions in Glenwood South, some of which, he believes, make things harder for potential customers to stop in.
“So this [sign] says, ‘No parking. Mixed use loading zone. Monday to Sunday. 24 hours.’ Signs like this aren't really helpful,” Burnett said.
Starting July 1, parking fines in Glenwood South will increase from the current $30 to $200 between the hours of 9 p.m. and 7 a.m. Burnett believes that’s a drastic change.
“Two hundred dollars? That's huge, and that's going to send some serious messages to people that were coming to Glenwood South to have dinner, to have services," Burnett said. "These are growing pains of a city. This is a district responsible for $1.2 billion in economic impact. You're going to have some growing pains. But I think it's something that we can get through and make sure that there is a balance between small business and the quality of life that Glenwood South is known for."
While that change may not impact his customers directly, he does think about the people visiting nearby bars and restaurants.
“Sometimes people, you know, the best decision is for them to leave their car overnight,” Burnett said.
He agrees the needs of businesses and residential areas are both important, but he also believes stores like his can’t survive without attracting people from in and out of town.
“Raleigh is great, but we have infrastructure challenges. This is another infrastructure challenge. It's another infrastructure challenge. It's like, hey, like we've got the people, but we don't have the parking,” Burnett said. “This could be just one other thing that makes it challenging for some of these small businesses to maintain clients, patrons on Glenwood South.”
The city says this fee increase is meant to attract people to parking garages or surface lots, keep the area safe and prevent overnight parking on nearby residential streets. The city offers resources on a website to find parking in downtown Raleigh.
As for how the city council landed on $200 as the new fine, the city attorney was asked to figure out what the possible highest fee they could charge was.
For comparison, the city of Charlotte charges $100 for a similar violation.
According to the city, Raleigh receives about $1.3 million a year from parking citations.