Free parking weekends in Cleveland Heights continue in 2013

Cleveland Heights will extend the free-parking weekends it offered last year through 2013. On the last full weekend (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) of each month, parking will be free wherever there is a meter: on the street, in city parking lots and in city parking garages.

The first free-parking weekend of 2013 will be Jan. 25, 26 and 27.

Mayor Ed Kelley said that Cleveland Heights City Council made the decision in mid-January, after hearing from a number of merchants, and from people who live in other cities who had visited the Heights during last year’s free weekends.

“The response to our free parking weekends has been very positive,” said Kelley. “Business owners and residents have been very supportive of this idea. It reinforces the city’s commitment to our commercial districts and also has been an incentive to bringing more people to our excellent restaurants and one-of-a-kind stores throughout the city.”

Kelley said that the last weekend of the month is generally slower for merchants than other times. He said that, although the three-day free-parking weekends cost the city an average of $1,600 in meter revenues per day, it frees police officers from writing tickets and gives the officers an opportunity to attend to other duties. “We know we are competing with free parking elsewhere. This gets people to come to the city, and maybe they return to rent or buy a house,” said Kelley.
 
Signs will be posted on the city’s parking garages the last week of the month to remind visitors and residents they may park at no charge the last weekend of the month.