The deal wasn’t limited to locals, even though the garage is partly owned by Arlington County (which would rather residents bicycle or use the Metro anyway). But the County Board on Saturday voted unanimously to end one of the region’s great parking bargains, raising the all-day rates to $10 on both weekdays and weekends.
In comparison, Pentagon Row garage parkers pay $18 per day, and $20 per day rates are not unheard of in downtown Washington.
Monthly parkers at the Ballston garage will pay more, too. Five-day-per-week users will pay $105, an increase of $28. Seven-day-a-week users will pay $145, or $41 more than they now pay.
Board member Jay Fisette noted that the base rate of $1 for three hours won’t change and is still less than the $1.25 per hour cost of street meters. The garage rates, he said, are “way under market and we don’t have the money to maintain the facility. From my perspective, this is quite a modest change.”
Repairs and maintenance of the garage will cost more than $14 million during the next 10 years, county staff estimated. The cost of operations, which are outsourced to Standard Parking, have been cut by $250,000 in the past three years.
The garage, first built in the 1950s, was expanded to seven stories with 2,800 spaces in 1984. Arlington County bought into it as part of an economic development initiative, financing the purchase with $22.3 million in bonds. An eighth parking level was finished in 2008.
Changing the parking fees require the agreement of four other bondholders, mostly nearby property owners, which is why the hourly rates have been the same since 1994 and the monthly rates the same since 1996.
Nevertheless, the garage is at only 70 to 75 percent capacity at its busiest times during the midweek’s midday hours.
Thrifty commuters and shoppers still have time to save. The old prices are in effect until May 1.
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