Visiting Bellevue Soon? Get Ready to Lose Free Street Parking
The downtown city center in Bellevue, WA is about 410 acres, it's the 2nd largest city center in WA. Now, they're considering doing away with free parking there.
The city says it's struggling to find spaces.
The city center is home to about 1,300 businesses and is considered easily walkable. But city officials say lack of parking is a fast-growing issue.
Finding what's called an open-street parking spot is hard, there are only about 350 of them in the area. Officials say it's because of the design of the area many years ago. They have what they call "super-blocks," or very long streets, and fewer of them. That means fewer parking spaces next to the curb.
The growth of delivery companies and ride-share business has also choked out a lot of spots. City officials believe charging for parking could possibly keep more spots open, so it would act as a deterrent.
No specific pricing schedule has been released, but officials say different levels are being looked at. Public comments are being taken, then the city planning commission will decide what to do.
Despite many issues in neighboring Seattle and King County, the downtown Bellevue area continues to attract business, shoppers, and visitors.
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