Charlottetown mayor wants closer look at free downtown parking

Charlottetown's mayor plans to ask the city's economic development committee to examine the pros and cons of free parking in the downtown.

Philip Brown said Ward 1 CouncillorAlannaJankovraised the idea of free parking downtown for the Christmas season, but the idea has since been floated to get rid of metered parking in the downtown core altogether.

He said the city has made parking free downtown for the Christmas season in the past.

"Christmastime is a great time to bring people down to the downtown," he said."And it was tried in the past and I believed it was successful."

Revenue loss

Brown said the city brings in about $950,000 in parking revenue each year.

"That's a lot of money to take out of the equation," he said.

"That's why this whole issue must be carefully looked at. Let's have a discussion about it and look at the pros and cons."

Brownsaid one question that needs to be answered is how to ensure people aren't parking for long periods of time without meters timing their stay.

"Someone has to monitor the length of any person or driver parking his or her car in the downtown, so that cost will not go away," he said.

"The commissionaires ... monitoring the parking meters, that's a cost that remains. So how do we incorporate that into the overall plan is an issue that will have to be discussed."

Contact councillorsif concerned

Brown saidhe wants the committee to address the parking issue right away.

He also said any residents that are concerned about the issue should contact their councillors.

"I've said over and over, Philip Brown is only a leader amongst leaders, and the leaders in those wards are the councillors responsible," he said.

"So if they have issues or concerns about the parking and what we should do with it, pass that along to their councillors."

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