Starting Monday, parking in two county-owned decks off Marietta Square will be more restricted and expensive to members of the public.
The county voted to privatize operations at the deck earlier this year after losing hundreds of thousands of dollars a year on the facilities. Commissioners awarded the contract to LAZ Parking, which runs parking lots throughout the metro area.
Now, the Cobb-Waddell parking deck attached to the 100 Cherokee Street government building will be reserved for county employees from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. It will open to the public after 5 p.m. and on weekends.
The Lawrence Street deck near the courthouse will be open to public parking all the time.
A new fee scale is also going into effect.
- The first 30 minutes will remain free to park.
- Thirty to 60 minutes: $2
- 1-2 hours: $4
- 3 hours: $6
- 4-6 hours: $7
- 6 or more hours: $8
The decks, next to the county government building and courthouse, have been losing money since 2012. They cost $11 million to build and the county continues to pay $750,000 a year on the debt, but the lots have only brought in about half that.
Support real journalism. Support local journalism. Subscribe to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution today. See offers.
Your subscription to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution funds in-depth reporting and investigations that keep you informed. Thank you for supporting real journalism.