April 29, 2024
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Joliet moving towards free street parking downtown

No decision made yet but city moving in that direction, official says

By Bob Okon
A person pays for parking at a parking kiosk along West Clinton Street in Downtown Joliet on Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2023.

A person pays for parking at a parking kiosk along West Clinton Street in downtown Joliet in October. (Gary Middendorf/Gary Middendorf)

Joliet appears to be moving toward free street parking downtown.

The City Council on Tuesday will vote whether to pay its parking consultant an extra $10,000 to “provide specific coordination and assistance with tasks that will include the removal of on-street parking meters, implementation of new parking time limits, parking enforcement and parking garage technology upgrades.”

The wording is in a staff memo to the council that suggests City Hall is ready to eliminate paid parking – at least on downtown streets – which is something that has been discussed for years and was recommended last year by the city’s parking consultant.

“That is probably the direction that we will recommend,” Public Works Director Greg Ruddy told the City Council Public Service Committee on Monday.

“No decision has been made at this time to do that,” Ruddy said. “That will be a council decision.”

Gregory Ruddy, Director Of Public Works at City of Joliet, speaks at Monday’s Public Service Committee Meeting on December 5th.

Public Works Director Gret Ruddy (Gary Middendorf – gmiddendorf@shawmedia/Gary Middendorf)

The committee voted to recommend approval of the add-on to the consultant’s contract.

One of the main justifications for parking meters is that they prevent people from parking their cars on the streets all day.

Ruddy said the plan for free street parking would likely include a two-hour limit that would be strictly patrolled.

Other cities that do not have paid parking set time limits for parking on the street.

Public Service Committee Chairman Larry Hug noted that the city has been working with consultants off and on for years on downtown parking issues.

“This is certainly not the first time we’ve had a consultant,” Hug said.

Parking consultant WGI recommended eliminating paid street parking in October when presenting the council with conclusions from its study of downtown parking operations.

An old style parking meter sits along West Jefferson Street in Downtown Joliet on Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2023.

An old style parking meter sits along West Jefferson Street in downtown Joliet. (Gary Middendorf/Gary Middendorf)

The study concluded that Joliet has a surplus of parking spaces downtown and paid parking can inhibit economic recovery for the business district.

“When parking demand decreases in an urban core/downtown, the need for parking fees must be revisited,” according to the study.

The study also found that many businesses and property owners in the downtown area favor free on-street parking.

“There was a general perception that the fees charged for parking downtown hinder the economic resiliency of the downtown area,” according to the study.

Joliet has 590 on-street parking spaces, according to the study.

Parking spaces total 2,872, which includes two parking decks and eight parking lots.