Parking Plan At Arena Lot Makes Return

Wed., Dec. 1, 1999

By Kristina Johnson kristinaj@spokesman.com

A commuter parking program suspended since last spring is back in operation near the Spokane Arena.

The program called City Ticket offers downtown commuters a parking and downtown shuttle service combination for $19 a month, said Annie Matlow, spokesperson for the Downtown Spokane Partnership.

In the last two years, parking at the lot has gone from mostly free to all paid to a mix of free and paid spots. Most recently, the first 300 commuters paid nothing for parking while everyone else paid $2 per space plus 25 cents each way for the downtown shuttle.

Under the new program, 300 spots will remain free to those parking fewer than four hours. Those parking longer than that without a City Ticket pass will pay $2 for parking plus a 25-cent shuttle fare.

City officials suspended the old City Ticket program last May while they surveyed the parking lot’s users to find out where they live and work.

The Spokane Regional Transportation Council asked for the user comparison to make sure charging to park in the lot wasn’t discouraging commuters from using it.

The federal government gave the city $75,000 in the 1970s to buy the lot on Boone between Howard and Washington. Officials hoped the lot would keep cars out of downtown, improving the city’s air quality.

Survey results satisfied transportation council officials that charging to park in the lot wasn’t keeping commuters away, Miles said.

People interested in buying a City Ticket can stop by the Spokane Transit Authority bus plaza, 701 W. Riverside.

Businesses interested in buying the tickets in bulk for their employees can call Judy Young at STA, 456-7277.

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