The City of Lethbridge Economic Standing Policy Committee voted against raising parking fines in downtown Lethbridge, February 15, 2023. Parking meter on 3rd Avenue South in Lethbridge, Alberta. (Photo: S.Jones/LNN)

By Sarah Jones

Lethbridge committee votes unanimously against parking increase after public feedback

Feb 16, 2023 | 11:12 AM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – The debate on raising Lethbridge’s parking fines has come before the city’s Economic Standing Policy Committee (SPC).

On February 15, 2023, Lethbridge residents and downtown business owners gathered at City Hall to speak at the SPC’s monthly meeting to discuss grievances about proposed Bylaw 6393.

The proposed bylaw would raise parking ticket fines across the city from $25 to $50, while maintaining a $15 reduction if payment was received within seven days.

After hearing from several citizens, the Economic SPC unanimously voted against moving forward with increasing fines.

Read more: ‘Another nail in the coffin’: Parking fine increase to go before City of Lethbridge committee

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Brian Smith, who was at City Hall to show support for those speaking at Wednesday’s Economic SPC, said people downtown see this proposed jump in fines as a step backwards.

“It feels to me like a bit of suffocation on downtown,” said Smith. “It’s a huge deterrent for people wanting to come down and shop as it is.”

He continued, “You know, COVID gave us a huge hit, and a lot of businesses struggled through that, and I think just with people getting back on their feet, this is just another kind of roadblock to put in front of them. I know from an on-paper standpoint, it probably makes a lot of sense for the city, but you know, for the people that live and breathe downtown, it’s kind of a step in the wrong direction I feel like.”

Lethbridge City Council was set to give the bylaw a second and third reading on February 7, 2023, but after receiving several letters of disapproval, council moved the item to the SPC for public feedback.

Hunter Heggie, a businessman in Lethbridge said, “I’m glad that council put this to an SPC so that we could discuss with them, and air our grievances. I’m grateful for that.”

During the February 15 meeting, nine people expressed their concerns about the fines, but also indicated several other issues with parking downtown.

These included complications with the parking meters not working properly in cold weather, machines not accepting debit cards, time limits in certain zones, not allowing people to plug the meter before it expires, and problems with the parking app.

While the meeting sparked conversations about various parking issues in Lethbridge, the SPC could only suggest recommendations on the increase in parking fines.

The SPC spoke about multiple options, including considering monthly passes, replacing the technology, eliminating parking fines entirely, and pushing back a decision until the Downtown Lethbridge Business Revitalization Zone (BRZ) could put together a presentation from local businesses.

Following discussion among the SPC, the committee members voted unanimously against moving forward with the motion to increase fines.

This decision will send the issue back to Lethbridge City Council for further discussion on February 21, 2023.

The Economic Standing Policy Committee is recommending that City Council direct administration to work with the Downtown Business Improvement Area and the Heart of our City Committee to generate engagement and present different parking options.

Read more background on this topic: Lethbridge City Council looking to raise parking fines to $50