Answering questions about the paid parking initiative
For our most recent parking details please click here.
When Seaside announced our new paid parking initiative, we knew that there would be growing pains. We’ve listened to what our patrons say, and what locals say, and we’re happy to address some of the biggest questions around the changes.
Here are some of the questions we’ve received and our answers. And as always, if you have any specific questions please feel free to ask us on social media. We always make sure to respond.
“Why make people pay for parking?”
Seaside has always been about enhancing and protecting the human experience. If you have come to Seaside during peak hours, you know the traffic can get really backed up with people circling for up to an hour looking for a parking spot. Implementing paid parking has cut down on the constant circling of vehicles. Now you don’t have to walk past a line of parked cars spewing fumes in your face, filled with distracted drivers who are hunting for a spot instead of focusing on the road. Now, you can just enjoy the experience.
“I miss the old days! Why can’t Seaside stay the same?”
Due to the attractive lifestyle, culture, and ever-growing popularity of our town’s merchants and restaurants, people have grown to love our area; with growth comes change. We have monitored the growth over the past several years and have made adjustments in an effort to make your future experience as enjoyable as possible.
“There’s already not enough parking.”
People intuitively understand that if you give something away for free you’ll run out of it, and that applies to parking too. The idea is to price parking so that there’s always ten to fifteen percent occupancy so that you can have that “good old days” experience of driving up to the place you want to go and easily find a spot, which is something you couldn’t do before. We may need to adjust the price and we’re open to feedback from you.
“You’re just doing this to make money.”
People think we’re operating the parking initiative to make more money and/or because we don’t want people here, but the opposite is true. All of the money collected from parking goes towards our shuttle and to the company that has been contracted to run the paid parking service.
For more information on the New Urbanism principles, on which this decision was made, please watch the videos below:
