Newark’s proposed 15-minute courtesy parking plan now under consideration by City Council. (Photo by Elijah Mears on Unsplash)
Newark’s Parking Advisory Committee is recommending a 15-minute courtesy parking option as part of its first set of proposals to City Council, a change members say could make quick trips downtown easier.
The proposal, presented at the Aug. 11 council meeting, would allow drivers to park free for up to 15 minutes while still using the Passport app or kiosks, enabling the city to track use without processing small payments.
Committee Chair Rob Gifford stated that short-term transactions currently generate little net revenue once credit card processing fees are factored in.
“It just barely covers our costs,” Gifford said.
The city estimates the program would result in an annual net revenue loss of about $17,000, or 0.58% of current parking revenue.
“We’re not trying to give away free parking right off the bat or anything like that,” Gifford told council. “We’re taking a serious approach. 15 minutes is a nice amount of time where somebody won’t have any issues saying, ‘Oh, I was just two minutes over.’”
The proposal would apply to both on-street and lot parking without reserving specific spaces. Gifford said the program could encourage more people to come downtown for quick errands, pickups, or deliveries.
“Folks might find it as a positive thing — maybe they stay longer, or they feel like downtown is a great place to go,” he said.
Director of Planning and Development Renee Bensley praised the committee’s work, noting that members have taken a hands-on approach to problem-solving.
“They recognize that there are issues with parking that they want to see corrected, but they come at it in both a collaborative spirit [and] a willingness to put boots to the ground and get the work done,” she said.
Other measures in the proposal include improving and standardizing downtown parking signage, monitoring lot usage with existing technology, and launching a new parking survey to better understand customer needs. The committee also intends to explore upgrades to the city’s parking app, develop a downtown parking marketing plan, and review the existing parking rate structure.
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