Nelson’s new parking meter rates kicked in on April 15.
Hourly parking meter fees were raised 60 per cent from $1.25 to $2 following a council decision on Jan. 9.
Parking fines will also be increased by 60-to-100 per cent depending on the category of the infraction. For an expired meter, the fine will increase to $40 from the current $25 (or from $10 to $20 if paid within 14 days).
Deputy chief financial officer Aimee Mooney said at the Jan. 9 meeting that parking meter fees and fines, currently amounting to about $1 million annually, pay for much of the city’s construction and maintenance of streets and sidewalks.
She said the increases were necessary because construction costs have risen by 42 per cent since 2017 when meter rates were last increased. Other cited reasons are the need for more parking enforcement and limited parking downtown, which leads to many infractions.
If street construction and maintenance were to come out of property taxes rather than parking meters, Mooney said, taxes would have to increase by 13 per cent.
READ MORE: Nelson to raise parking meter rates by 60%