Salem Downtown Parking

On October 23, City Council directed staff to implement free 2-hour time-limited parking in Downtown Salem by February 1, 2007 and establish managed parking under the leadership of a parking manager.

On December 11, 2006, Council approved plans for two-hour on-street parking spaces, revised locations for 30-minute and disabled parking, sign changes, and enforcement days for time limits. Long-term free customer parking will continue to be available in the parking garages.  Public information, business information resources, and directional signs for parking garages will be provided before and after February 1.

Downtown Parking Changes Coming February 1, 2007

Ø      2-hour free parking for downtown customers will be extended throughout downtown. Most unlimited and 30-minute spaces will become 2-hour spaces. See street plan map .

Ø      Most 30-minute spaces will be located at the end of blocks.

Ø      Some spaces for customers with disabilities will be moved to be more accessible.

Ø      Signs will be replaced to clearly show which spaces are for 30-minute parking or for customers with disabilities and which spaces allow 2-hour parking. At the end of many blocks, sign posts will hold two signs to clearly mark the dividing line between 2-hour and special use spaces.

Ø      No parking meters will be added. Downtown parking is still free to downtown customers both on-street and in the parking garages.

Ø      Long-term (no time limit) free customer parking will still be available in the City-owned parking garages located downtown.

Ø      New directional signs will be placed to help drivers find entrances to the City’s parking garages downtown: Marion Parking Structure , Chemeketa Parking Structure , and Liberty Square Parking Structure .

Ø All downtown on-street parking time limits will be enforced Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; spaces in the area of greatest parking congestion will also be enforced Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. A map is available to show these areas.

More Information for Customers

Ø      Fact Sheet about Downtown Parking Changes.

Ø      Frequently Asked Questions aobut Downtown Parking

Ø  Customer Parking Information Card

Parking Information for Downtown Employees

The changes to downtown parking are designed to provide on-street parking spaces for the customers that keep downtown businesses in business. Business owners and employees of downtown businesses who do not have access to business-provided parking can purchase parking permits for use in the City-owned parking garages. A study of the garage permit pricing structure is underway and the needs of part-time and temporary employees are being reviewed. A Salem Downtown Parking Users Guide for Emplyees is available from downtown businesses and through the website.  If you need a prking permit, review the Parking Permit Information Sheet.

More Information about Downtown Parking Changes

      Parking Forum , Thursday January 18, 5:30-7:00pm, Reed Opera House, 189 Liberty Street NE

Ø      Radio spots, newspaper articles and a banner over Liberty Street will inform the public about parking changes.

Ø      Informational flyers and postcards will be available from many downtown businesses. These informational materials will be posted to the website in early January.

Ø    Background about “How Did We Get Here?” is available below.

Ø     Questions, concerns, or comments can be sent to downtownparking@cityofsalem.netor contact Jim Upham, Acting Parking Manager for the City of Salem, (503) 588-6471, jupham@cityofsalem.net .

Next Steps

Ø      Location of 30-Minute Spaces: Over 150 30-minute spaces were changed to 2-hour spaces; 31 were retained and located to support businesses with specific needs for very-short term customer parking. A process will be established to allow for review of how these spaces are used and relocation, addition or deletion of these spaces. More information will be available after February 1.

Ø      Management of Downtown Parking: A parking manager will be hired and a Parking Division will be organized to efficiently and effectively support downtown parking. An advisory group representing downtown businesses will be developed. More information will be available after February 1.

Ongoing Improvement: A schedule will be created for ongoing parking demand studies and public and business input processes. The guiding principles and strategies developed in 2006 will be used to improve parking to support downtown success.

How Did we Get Here?

Parking congestion in Downtown Salem is a positive sign of a thriving downtown but can be a problem if customers find it too difficult to locate a place to park. A parking study was conducted in 2006 to assess the problem. The study included collection of parking utilization data and citation statistics and extensive public involvement. Results of the Downtown Parking Study 2006  led to Council approval of principles and strategies to guide long-term management of downtown parking in Salem. Staff was directed to immediately implement 2-hour time-limited parking downtown, effective February 1, 2007. The planning process for implementing Two Hour parking Downtown in February 2007 involved review of study results, an additional parking utilization survey and public involvement .