Wilmington City Council tables downtown parking changes

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Business owners and members of the public turned out at Tuesday’s Wilmington City Council meeting anxious to hear how the council would vote on a possible hike in downtown parking rates.

After Parking Manager Betty Gurganus presented reasons to raise the rates to the council, members voted to table the ordinance until its first meeting in August.

Several council members said they were hesitant to vote on the measure before getting public reaction. They also expressed wanting more time to look at how the revenue trends are affected over the next few months.

The council is considering hiking rates to cover a projected $800,000 shortfall in next year’s parking fund.

The measure would increase evening parking deck fees from $5 to $7, change the first 90 minutes free in the city’s second and market street decks to the first hour free and extend parking meter hours from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on most downtown streets.