Auburn’s new downtown parking system is drawing criticism from residents and business owners who say the payment process is too complicated, too dependent on phones and potentially discouraging people from visiting downtown.
The concerns surfaced repeatedly during this week’s city council meeting, where two speakers criticized the city’s shift away from traditional parking meters and urged officials to consider changes. City Manager Jenny Haines later acknowledged the feedback and said the city would work with staff and the Auburn Downtown Partnership on possible responses.
The city has been removing old parking meters and kiosks while installing new signage directing drivers to Pango, its mobile parking payment system. People who don’t want to use the app can also pay by text message or phone, according to information previously provided by the city.
But speakers Thursday said those alternatives haven’t solved the usability problem.
Sue Wavey, a city resident and downtown business owner, told council that she has received significant negative feedback about the new system and argued that public concerns shouldn’t be dismissed as complaints limited to social media.
Wavey said paying for a short downtown stop can take too long and raised concerns about entering credit card information into another digital service.
She proposed making downtown parking free, or offering two hours of free parking before requiring payment. That approach, she argued, could make downtown more accessible while still encouraging turnover in high-demand spaces.
Wavey also suggested the city could rethink the role of parking enforcement downtown, potentially using personnel to address other quality-of-life concerns rather than focusing primarily on collecting parking fees.
Council took no action on that proposal Thursday.
Another speaker described a recent experience involving an older man who parked at Wegmans and walked downtown because he was uncomfortable using a parking app.
She also said communication about when parking is free needs to improve.
During her visit downtown, she said, parking happened to be free, but that wasn’t clearly posted in a way that would have helped someone unfamiliar with the system.
The speaker said she understood the city’s interest in collecting parking revenue but questioned whether the current system works equally well for residents and visitors who are less comfortable with smartphones, apps or online payment systems.
The complaints come as Auburn completes one of its biggest changes to downtown parking in years.
Under the new system, kiosks remain in parts of downtown, including portions of Genesee Street, the city parking garage and the Dill Street parking lot. Elsewhere, the city has installed signs directing motorists to Pango and other electronic payment options.
Haines told council the physical transition is largely complete, with old equipment removed and new signage installed.
She also made clear that city officials are hearing the criticism.
“We are hearing and listening to feedback on the city’s parking program,” Haines said.
She said the city would discuss the concerns with staff and the Auburn Downtown Partnership and work through possible responses.
No specific changes were announced during the meeting.
The issue could become particularly important for downtown businesses if merchants believe the payment system is creating another barrier for customers.
The city has spent years trying to increase downtown activity through redevelopment, events, housing and business investment. The parking debate now presents officials with a balancing act between generating parking revenue, encouraging turnover and making downtown easy enough to use that visitors aren’t deterred from stopping in the first place.
For now, the new system remains in place. But after weeks of public feedback and increasingly direct criticism at City Hall, city officials have signaled that the rollout isn’t necessarily the end of the conversation.
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