AUBURN — The price of parking downtown is going up.
The city plans to restructure the number and location of permitted parking spaces and, beginning in October, boost the monthly permit price from $35 per month to $45, police Chief Phil Crowell said Wednesday.
Many free spaces will remain. However, the city hopes to take in about $75,000 with the changes, he said.
Beginning Thursday, city officials are to meet with several downtown groups, including the Auburn-Lewiston YMCA, the Hilton Garden Inn, Androscoggin County officials and the Auburn Housing Authority.
“The plan is to meet with them and talk about their parking needs and concerns,” Crowell said.
For the county, a move to issuing parking permits could be expensive.
For example, the Androscoggin County Superior Court needs room for its personnel as well as for lawyers, jurors and visitors. The Sheriff’s Department needs places for deputies, corrections officers and others.
Sheriff Guy Desjardins said he worries what the cost might be to buy permits for his staff.
Many officers park along nearby Pleasant Street. However, the city’s plan likely will reclassify the 28 spaces there as a combination of free-but-timed spots with a two-hour maximum and permit-only spaces.
“We are going to regulate Pleasant Street more than it has been in the past,” Crowell said. “Right now, it’s just open parking.”
In some cases, people might be asked to walk a little farther.
For example, people can park for free without a time limit at dozens of spaces about two blocks away on Troy Street.
Many details are still uncertain, Crowell said.
The city has yet to decide the exact manner of permits, whether they will be attached to an account and used by different car owners or whether they will be affixed to cars.
Crowell is also investigating the purchase of a self-service kiosk at which drivers could buy passes for a day or a month as easily as they use an ATM.
dhartill@sunjournal.com
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