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Tampa City Council to discuss new parking fee rates

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TAMPA, Fla. — The next time you try to park in a City of Tampa garage, lot or metered spot, you might have to dig a bit deeper into your wallet.

On Thursday, the City Council will discuss rescinding its current parking fee structure for a new one during a meeting on Thursday. The last time city leaders changed parking rates was in February 2018.

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According to the agenda item request form, the city needs money to "repair and/or replace aging parking system infrastructure" over the next decade.


Parking Fees by ABC Action News

ABC Action News went through the old resolution and the new proposal. We made a side-by-side table that shows you the current fees, the new proposed fees and how much extra you could pay. For example, if you pay for a monthly unrestricted spot in a garage you could see an up-charge between $143 and $195.

Most parking categories would see increases in fees or rates. There are some that would not change or didn't have data to calculate a change.


Proposed Parking Fees by ABC Action News

A few permit holders might see a discount. Government agency permit holders could see a possible discount of $80. If you have a City of Tampa art studio permit, you might save $270.

ABC Action News requested parking violations and meter transaction data from the city. It goes from March, when the governor issued a state of emergency, to August, when things started to get back to normal.

Between April and June, the city collected no money for parking violations. During those same months in 2019, it collected just under $105,000.

The number of citations the city gives out only rebounded in August. Workers issued 169 more than in August of last year.

When it comes to meter transactions, the city saw the biggest decline in April: a 77.5% decrease from April 2019, totaling $129,720.95 less.

This year, meter transactions totaled just under $565,000. That's a 46.3% decrease from 2019 when meters raked in more than $1 million.