TAMPA, Fla. — Street parking in Tampa has gotten more expensive.
On January 1, on-street parking rates jumped from $1.50 per hour to $2.50 per hour in downtown Tampa, a move by the city to help businesses by encouraging drivers to find parking garages or lots, opening up on street parking for more in-and-out traffic for businesses.
What You Need To Know
- On-street parking rates increased in downtown Tampa
- Some new options available for downtown residents
- Click for new parking permits or to purchase a permit
But as downtown residents that utilized on street parking did the math, they quickly realized the amount of money they would pay to park in the new year would jump significantly.
Trey Putnam lives downtown with his fiancé and said he had no other choice but to park on the street, because he's been on a parking garage wait list for months.
"For the people it's impacting, I have friends in the building, friends downtown that are so frustrated by this and at a loss for words for what to do," said Putnam.
The City of Tampa has just launched a new budget friendly monthly parking permit, during restricted times, for downtown residents.
For $23 per month, the city has opened two parking lots on the outskirts of downtown for residents to park for cheap, saving them $3000 to $4000 a year in parking costs.
The new permit lots include:
Interstate Lot
https://www.tampa.gov/parking/programs/garages-and-lots/interstate-lot
Royal Regional Lot
https://www.tampa.gov/parking/programs/garages-and-lots/regional-royal-lot
Permit parking in the Interstate Lot and Royal Regional Lot is based on restricted times from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays, and all weekend long.
The city says it will also be awarding parking spaces in the Poe Garage, a popular downtown parking garage, after the Super Bowl.
Those awarded with spaces in the Poe Garage will pay just over $80 per month and will already need to be on the Poe Garage waiting list.
The parking changes downtown are part of a broader strategy by the city to change parking habits downtown.
The city says it wants to free up on-street parking for quick in-and-out business, and the added revenue will go toward parking garage repairs as well as future downtown parking projects.
The city says many medium to large size cities are already employing the same parking strategy to change driving habits as they battle climate change, more urban living and to develop more diverse mobility options.
For more information on the new parking permits or to purchase a permit, visit https://tampaparking.t2hosted.com/cmn/auth_guest.aspx, follow the prompts to “Get Permits” and proceed to checkout.