CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The city of Charlotte announced a change to parking in Uptown and South End. Saturday, Sept. 10, was supposed to be the first day of having to pay to park on Saturdays.
But now it's being pushed back to sometime next year.
Parking continues to be a hot topic in the Queen City. Earlier this year, the Charlotte City Council approved the proposal to have people pay for parking on Saturdays in Uptown and South End.
WCNC Charlotte spoke with people who said this is not moving things in the right direction.
“I think it kind of sucks," Guthrie Cohen said. “If you are trying to encourage people to come to Uptown and now they have to pay to park on a Saturday? That doesn’t add up.”
The city said it is holding off because it's a part of its "action plan" aimed at reviewing the street parking and curb space.
Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles said there are a few reasons why this change will be good. The city estimates it will rake in over $700,000 in additional revenue in one year. Lyles said it will also encourage people to use public transit to come into the City and it will free up spots for paying customers.
“We ought to create the parking so you can go into the city and park, but not for three days at a time," Lyles said.
But some on the council disagree. Tariq Bokhari said Charlotte's public transit is not strong enough and the plan is not thought through.
Contact Austin Walker at awalker@wcnc.com and follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.