Community News

City celebrates opening of parking deck

Mayor Barbara Volk cuts parking deck ribbon as City Council members and other city leaders look on.

By Bill Moss, Published: March 1, 2023

Hendersonville leaders celebrated the opening of the city's new parking deck on Wednesday, hailing it as long-demanded and for years delayed solution to a downtown parking shortage.

“The comments I have received about this structure have been totally positive," Mayor Barbara Volk said before a well-attended ceremonial ribbon cutting on the top floor of the parking garage. "People say 'I've never seen such a nice parking deck. It looks like an office building.' Watching it go up with the panels already in place was fascinating for people. And where else can you get a view like this? Even if you don't park here, you can walk up here or take the elevator and you can just enjoy this beautiful view of our wonderful community.”

Decades in the hazy visioning, ruminating and talking stages, the parking deck has been in the more focused conceptual, planning, design and construction phases for four years. To cover the debt service and ensure that it had not sunk $12 million into a structure no one used, the City Council eliminated free parking downtown and adopted new rates for city parking lots. Visitors can pay for parking on the street and in lots via kiosks or the parkmobile app.

Volk pointed out that parking consultants "all told us we were doing things backward by giving free parking on Main and charging for distant parking."

“We are so glad that this day is finally here. People have been waiting for it as has the rest of the city council," the mayor said. "We're tired of hearing about parking too. This is a wonderful turnout for something as mundane as a parking deck. It's really important for our town and for our businesses and for our citizens.”

City Manager John Connet praised current and previous council members for their vision and boldness in insisting that the parking deck be built close to Main Street.

“As we were starting to talk about this parking deck, there was conversation to put the deck over on the Dogwood lot and Jeff (Miller) and members of council — Jerry (Smith) and Ron (Stevens) and Steve (Caraker) — they said, ‘If we're gonna do this, we’re gonna buy this property.’ So it was great vision on behalf of the entire city for the council back about four years ago for us to buy the property and put it together.”

Connet and others credited the leadership of Assistant City Manager Brian Pahle, who spearheaded the project and helped draft the financial plan to structure downtown parking as an enterprise fund paid for by users, not property-tax payers.

“82,251 — that's our, our key number. That's the heaviest weight of the largest precast panel," he said, then joked: "Also that's the number of minutes that our staff has put into preparing for this grand opening. And the number of comments we have read on Facebook regarding this project." One commenter, he said, pointed out that "you could actually just park right over here on Washington Street and it's the same distance as that free parking you would get walking in the Walmart parking lot. You still have free parking."

"On behalf of the business community," Chamber of Commerce President Bob Williford said, "we just want to say that we appreciate the time and the care and consideration that the city puts into our downtown. It's very popular. It brings a lot of people to our community. Thank you for all the support you've given to downtown.”

Paid parking delayed till Friday

Earlier, the city announced that go-live for kiosks and paid parking in Downtown Hendersonville has been pushed back to Friday, March 3, so that the City Council can approve the parking ordinance amendments and official parking map during their meeting on March 2. Additional information is available at www.hvlnc.gov/parking.

The new parking management system, which includes a new permit structure and metering of on-street parking, is now scheduled to go live at 4 a.m. Friday, March 3. For more information visit www.hvlnc.gov/parking

Here are details on the parking changes:
 

• On-Street Parking: On-Street Hourly Parking Rate: $2 per hour. Fees are charged in one-hour increments. Metered parking is enforced 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-Saturday. Parking for less than 30 minutes is free. This grace period allows quick stops downtown. If visitors exceed 30 minutes, the full hour amount will be charged.  Payment options include:
  ParkMobile app (70216) and parking kiosks located along Main Street. The kiosks accept major credit cards, Apple Pay, as well as U.S. coins and dollars ($1, $5, and $10s). The kiosks do not provide change for overpayment. Always check-in via the ParkMobile App or kiosk – even if you only plan to stay a short time. Free on-street parking is also available a short walk beyond the boundaries of the Municipal Services District.
• Parking Deck: The deck is conveniently located at 415 N. Church Street directly across from the public restrooms and a few steps from beautiful Main Street. The four-level, 253-space structure offers four EV charging stations, accessible parking, and offers space for hourly parking and permitted parking. Parking Deck Hourly Rate: $1.50 per hour. Fees are charged in one-hour increments. $10 maximum per parking session (day resets in the deck at 4 a.m.)
  Lost ticket fee: $20. Parking for less than one hour is free. This grace period allows quick stops downtown. If visitors exceed one hour in the deck, the full parking duration amount will be charged. Hourly pay-by-plate payment options include: From your vehicle using a credit card at payment kiosks located at the exit lanes, ParkMobile app (70215), at the walk-up kiosk located at the first-floor main tower before returning to a vehicle. The kiosk accepts major credit cards, Apple Pay, as well as US coins and dollars ($1, $5, and $10s). The kiosk does not provide change for overpayment.
• Parking lots: Available for hourly parking are the Maple Lot (70212) - 489 N. King Street;
  Spruce Lot (70214) 405 N. King Street; Azalea Lot (70213) - Between 3rd & 4th Avenue East (electric vehicle charging station). Rate is $1.50/hour. Fees are charged in one-hour increments. $10 maximum per parking session (day resets in the parking lots at 4 a.m.) Paid parking is enforced 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-Saturday. Parking for less than one hour is free. This grace period allows quick stops downtown. If visitors exceed one hour in a city parking lot, the full parking duration amount will be charged. Hourly pay-by-plate payment options include: ParkMobile app, at parking kiosks located in the lots. The kiosks accept major credit cards, Apple Pay, as well as US coins and dollars ($1, $5, and $10s). The kiosks do not provide change for overpayment. Always check-in via the ParkMobile App or kiosk – even if you only plan to stay a short time. Metering is enforced Monday - Saturday from 9 a.m.-7 p.m.