The word is getting out. The downtown merchants in Macon, GA, have told the city if they go ahead with the privatization of downtown parking, ( and that appears to be a pretty big “if”) that the merchants want the profit.
That is a Shoupist’s wet dream. Remember the three tenants of Don Shoup’s “High Cost of Free Parking” theories:
- Do away with parking requirements
- Charge market based rates so that 15% of the spaces are free at all times
- Plow the money back in to the area it came from.
The wise merchants are on board at least with number three. There could be some issues. My guess is that if the parking operator wants to do this on their nickel, they will want to have control over the parking rates. That might not be an issue, however, since market rates are usually higher than those charged when they were set arbitrarily by the city.
The story indicates that there is a long way to go in Macon…but it’s a beginning.
JVH
