Boise council passes Saturday parking meter enforcement

Publish date: 2024-05-02

The days of free parking Saturday on the streets of downtown Boise are coming to an end.

A divided Boise City Council voted Tuesday to start enforcement of parking meters in the downtown core on Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.

The areas include the spots between 5th, 11th, Jefferson and Grove streets.

That enforcement will begin Feb. 1.

Mayor Dave Bieter had to step in and cast the tie-breaking vote to pass the Saturday enforcement after two votes ended in ties.

Final approval of the policy will likely come next week when the updated ordinance is posted to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd reading calendars and approved by roll call vote.

Sundays will remain free and as always, the first 20 minutes are also free. On Saturdays, the first hour of metered parking will cost 50 cents. The second hour will also cost 50 cents.

The council also voted to increase metered parking rates and extend enforcement hours during the week.

But it was Saturday enforcement that was the main sticking point, says city spokesman Mike Journee.

Journee also said people who leave their cars downtown Friday night (perhaps because they've had too much to drink) can pre-pay their meters for up to two hours so they have until until noon to return, pick up their car and avoid a ticket.

The city says the proposed increases are all about getting the "churn" going..."churn"...as in more movement in downtown parking, which the city says isn't being used as efficiently as it could,

An 18-month study by the city finds Boise's downtown core is at maximum capacity for metered parking Monday through Friday and on Saturday as well.

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