Council approves another year of downtown parking permit program with on-street residential permits

Salisbury City Council voted May 6 to approve an additional year of the Downtown Salisbury parking program for fiscal year 2025–26, expanding the pilot to include on-street residential permits and retaining off-street commercial permit locations.

Downtown Development Director Ceta Trautman said the program, active since 2023, responds to demand for varied parking options by residents, property owners and businesses. The city staff proposal separates permit locations by user type: commercial permits would be offered in off-street lots (Wells Fargo lot and the City Office Building lot) while residential permits would be assigned to on-street spaces in the 100 blocks of East and West Council Street and a few spaces in the Center City lot. Trautman said the program remains first-come, first-served at application time and does not guarantee a specific parking space; permit holders may park in any available space within their permitted lot or block.

Program details presented to council included up to 40 on-street residential spaces and about 35 off-street 24/7 spaces, for up to 75 total permits (fewer than 5% of downtown's roughly 1,500 public spaces). Permit holders would be allowed to park for longer than two hours in designated on-street areas; the city retains the right to require permit holders to move up to 10 days per year for events such as the Cheerwine Festival. Trautman said enforcement will continue to be handled by the police department using recently approved citation software.

A council member moved to approve the one-year extension with the described on-street and off-street categories; council adopted the motion by voice vote. Staff will monitor usage and report back as the pilot continues.