SLO’s downtown parking rates just dropped. Here’s how much you can expect to pay to park
Starting Monday, San Luis Obispo is charging less to park downtown.
After facing intense criticism for upping parking rates last year, the San Luis Obispo City Council voted in May to reduce its rates for both street-side and structure parking.
Those rate changes went into effect Monday.
Here’s a look at how much you can expect to pay when parking downtown.
How much does it cost to park on the street in downtown SLO?
Parking rates in the immediate downtown core — which encompasses the main stretches of Palm, Monterey, Higuera and Marsh streets between Santa Rosa and Nipomo streets, with a few outliers — dropped from $4 per hour to $2.75 per hour.
The maximum time limit for those spots also went up from two hours to three.
Further out from the more-expensive core, parking on the perimeter of downtown San Luis Obispo dropped from $3 to $2.25 per hour. Those have a daily time limit of 10 hours.
The city was also continuing to offer downtown street-side parking permits that could be used in the 10-hour metered spots for $60 a month or $180 a quarter. Street parking permits could only be purchased in person at the city’s Mobility Services Office at 1260 Chorro St., Suite B.
Enforcement hours for both the downtown core and perimeter were Monday through Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sundays from 1 to 9 p.m.
What are the rates for downtown SLO parking structures?
At the city’s three downtown parking structures, rates dropped Monday from $3 per hour to $2 per hour.
The three structures were located at 842 Palm St., 919 Palm St. and 871 Marsh St.
The daily maximum at the structures dropped from $12 a day to $8 per day.
The rate decreases did come at the cost of a longtime parking perk. As of Monday, there would no longer be free parking for the first hour or on Sundays at the city’s parking garages.
The city additionally decreased the cost of the monthly garage parking permits, dropping them from $85 per month to $45 per month. Those permits could be used at all three parking garages.
Structure permits could be purchased online at slo.thepermitportal.com.
This story was originally published July 8, 2024 at 5:00 AM.
%20Cropped.jpg)