Farewell Meters

And, that's a wrap with the parking meters!  After being operational for almost ten months (including a 3-month suspension), the program was cancelled this week.  Free parking is back in downtown Sarasota.

Theme Day: Electricity

This month's theme day in the City Daily Photo community is electricity. Of course, there wasn't a lightning storm to be found when I needed one, so I meandered down to the Palm Avenue Garage which opened about a year ago in downtown Sarasota. Four electric vehicle charging stations are located on the first floor.  Just pull up and plug in!  I was really hoping a car would be plugged in when I arrived to take this photo, but alas, no such luck.  As an aside, Stephen King, the bestselling author who lives nearby and whose wife drives an electric car, was here awhile ago to help promote electric car usage and the convenience of charging stations. Click here to view thumbnails for all City Daily Photo theme day participants.

Take 2

This is what the parking meters look like in downtown.  Although this is my third post on meters, this is the first time I've shown you what they look like.   I posted this photo just before the meters were unveiled last May.  And, then, I showed you this shot when the meters were temporarily bagged after being operational for six weeks.  Well, now they're back.  Based on community feedback, the program was overhauled, including moving meters to different streets, modifying the cost (cheaper during off-peak months) and providing more signage for users. Now, the meters seem a bit more palatable to business owners and customers.  In fact, today marks one month since the take 2 do-over and it seems business as usual downtown.

Bagged

After 6-weeks of having parking meters operational in downtown, the City Commission literally bagged the program -- at least until October, when seasonal business usually picks up.  When I posted this photo, I had planned on waiting a couple of months before providing an update on how the program was being received. Gosh....you haven't even seen the meters.  Well, stay tuned for a meter update in October.  Will they stay or will they go?

What Could It Be????

What's parking like where you live?

Roll Reversal

Notice anything unusual about these parking jobs?  They're all reverse angle parking.  A few years ago, when the city was studying its public parking inventory,  one block of Gulfstream Avenue in downtown was turned into reverse angle parking.  The theory is that reverse angle parking takes less room and thereby more spaces can be created.  Well, they're a hit.  They're a bit odd to navigate at first, but well worth it when you experience the ease of driving away.