Final 200 parking meters being removed from downtown Port Huron
Once there were hundreds of parking meters in downtown Port Huron.
But this week, the final few are coming down.
In a memo to City Council late last week, City Manager James Freed said crews would begin removing meters remaining in a city lot along Pine Street and around governmental buildings, such as along McMorran Boulevard.
This week, the official said the process was underway – the final step after a years-long review of the city’s parking meter program and related income versus costs.
“I think they’ve probably got 30% of them down right now,” Freed said Monday afternoon. “They’ll be slowly working throughout the next week to take them all down.”
According to the city, there would have been about 1,400 meters downtown well over a decade ago. Freed said in a separate email this week, that it included some larger lots like the East Quay, West Quay, and the Majestic.
By last week, there were roughly 200 meters remaining.
Meters were also removed from the lots outside the Municipal Office Center three years ago – something Freed told council members was because “someone shouldn’t have to pay to park just to conduct business at city hall.”
Downtown Lot Street Parking Detailed by Jackie Smith on Scribd
“To be consistent with that belief, I intend to remove the remaining parking meters around the library and courthouse,” Freed wrote, citing the main branch of the St. Clair County Library System and the county courthouse across the street. “There is a business case for this action, as well, as the parking meter operations have now lost money for the last 24 months. It no longer makes business sense to keep this program.”
In a breakdown from the city, parking meter activity in the 2019-20 fiscal year saw $13,716 in revenue versus $6,250 in 2020-21 and $12,175 in 2021-22. Fiscal years end June 30.
In that time, according to the city, parking meter expenses were $13,499, $16,893, and $18,950, respectively, marking the last profit of $218 in 2019-20 and netting losses of $10,643 and $6,775 the following two years.
“I intend to terminate the part-time position in this division and either auction or scrap the assets as appropriate,” Freed wrote. He said a traffic control order was expected to turn the remaining spots around government buildings into three-hour parking spots, and for one-hour parking along McMorran in front of the library and courthouse.
Freed’s directive went into effect Monday, as crews began to remove meters.
There remains a total of roughly 1,500 public parking spaces and 15 city-owned lots, according to the city.
Contact Jackie Smith at (810) 989-6270 or jssmith@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @Jackie20Smith.
This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: Final 200 parking meters being removed from downtown Port Huron
