Edmonton business owners frustrated by new paid parking zones
New parking meters are popping up in central Edmonton with signs saying "coming soon!" prompting a mix of surprise and frustration from some local business owners.
Starting Jan. 15., the City of Edmonton will charge $1 an hour for parking in four new zones within the North Edge Business Improvement Area, which includes the neighbourhoods of Queen Mary Park and Central McDougall.
A two-hour time restriction will also be put in place in two zones in the area just north of Unity Square, formerly known as Oliver Square.
Keisha Arsenault, owner of The Second Dollar, a new second-hand clothing store in Queen Mary Park said she had no idea new parking meters were being installed on 114th Street.
"I had no idea. I literally walked in this morning and I was like 'what?' Arsenault said.
Her store opens on Jan. 15, the same day the new meters and parking time limits kick into place.
"I'm really not happy about it, especially now that we are about to open."
Two doors down, Chris Lerohl, CEO of Uproot Food Collective echoed the same concern. He said he wasn't notified the city was installing parking meters until he saw a city worker installing signs.
"It's already such a challenging time for small businesses with everything from coming out of the pandemic, to the inflation, to financing challenges, any additional pressure just makes things so much harder right now," Lerohl said.
Chris Lerohl, CEO of Uproot Food Collective, said the parking meters are a blow to businesses in Queen Mary Park. (Nishat Chowdhury/CBC)
Free parking is one of the main reasons that Lerohl chose the area to open his business, he said.
"[Paid parking] just deters customers from coming down to this area."
The Alberta Avenue Business Improvement Area on 118th Avenue between 104th Street and 105th Street will also see $1 an hour parking fees.
The new meters will be placed on the west side of Northern Alberta Institute of Technology.
The current no-parking designation during peak hours on 104th Street, stretching from 118th Avenue to 119th Avenue, will be replaced with a two-hour time-restricted zone.
Erick Estrada, executive director of the Alberta Avenue Business Association, says the association has been working with the city to come up with the best solution for business owners to accommodate parking needs.
The response from business owners on Alberta Avenue has been a mixed bag, he says.
"Parking is limited and there are some people who abuse it," Estrada said.
"What will be the best solution to maintain affordable, accessible parking for all and at the same time prevent people from abusing the open space?
"We work with city administration to try and find out the best course of action."
City response
In a statement to CBC News on Thursday, Jenny Albers, acting director of traffic operations for the City of Edmonton, said the city informed the North Edge and Alberta Avenue BIA's of the changes in November 2023 and updated them of the launch last week.
"A 2023 parking study in both areas found they had high parking occupancy and a low turnover rate. In both cases, introducing a nominal charge of $1 per hour was determined to be an optimal way to address a number of competing concerns," read the statement.
Albers said the integration of paid parking combined with time-restricted parking can free up space and decrease the average parking duration so more customers can find available parking spots.
"Reduced traffic congestion also removes barriers for potential customers who walk, bike or use transit to travel, and will hopefully bring more walk-in customers to businesses," Albers said in the statement.
The city says patrons will still have 15 minutes of free curbside parking at the new EPark zones in both the North Edge and Alberta Avenue.
