The city of Alachua is undergoing a six-month parking experiment for free, two-hour on-street parking spots on the west side of Main Street. 

The parking spots between NW 150th Avenue and the Alachua Today building that have not had any time constraints are now limited to two hours from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday for six months while the city reviews feedback on the limit to consider how to best enforce it. 

The limit does not apply to city parking lots and on-street parking in residential areas. 

Six signs communicating the time limit were installed in flower beds on Main Street block corners near the applicable spots in May, and city staff distributed a letter dated May 28 to business owners notifying them of the changes after being approved in April. 

The letter said the changes aimed to address concerns regarding parking turnover and availability and create convenient parking, which studies indicate make a vibrant downtown. 

“As more businesses open along Main Street, effective parking management becomes increasingly important for downtown success,” the letter said. “The proposed two-hour parking limit will help ensure essential parking turnover, benefiting both customers and merchants.” 

Since being installed, Music Junction owner Leon Barrows said the signs are already helping. Barrow moved his store to its 14515 Main Street location specifically because parking on the other end of Main Street was a problem.  

“I think it’s a good avenue for Main Street and I think it’s going to succeed in the future for everybody on Main Street,” he said. 

Valerie’s Loft owner Nicole Stroud helped initiate the push for two-hour parking at the city level and said she also thinks the new signs are already providing more accessible parking for customers and that business owners haven’t had to enforce the limits. 

“It’s definitely working,” she said. “It’s definitely helped Main Street as far as, you know, customers having parking.” 

The issue of two-hour on-street parking for Main Street first came before the Community Redevelopment Agency Advisory Board (CRAAB) during public comment on Jan. 27. Resident Alan Hitchcock requested the signage due to trucks and business employees parking in the spaces for extended periods of time. 

Board member Bryan Boukari questioned the city’s ability to enforce the time limit, but agreed that parking had become an issue. 

His motion to ask the Community Redevelopment Agency Board (CRAB) to begin implementing the two-hour time limit by providing a means of enforcing it, notifying citizens about it and erecting necessary signage passed 5-0.  

The motion also called for signage in areas owned by the city that are not included in the time limit, and for the topic to come before the CRAAB and CRAB again for review after six months. 

On Feb. 24, the CRAB moved during a special meeting to direct staff to compose a letter informing Main Street residents and business owners about the parking changes and to research sign options. 

While Alachua Police Department (APD) Chief of Police Jesse Sandusky said APD had no objections to the parking time limit, he said it had the potential to become an issue since the department doesn’t have the resources to enforce it. 

He said the city would either have to hire a civilian staffer, a code enforcement officer or secure electronic services of an AI-based company to monitor the parking. 

Hitchcock said High Springs has a two-hour parking limit and that High Springs Police Chief Antoinne Sheppard told him his department hadn’t had to enforce it yet because people honored it on their own. 

Former Alachua City Manager Mike DaRoza said the last thing the city would want to do is put something in place it couldn’t enforce, especially if business owners are concerned about specific perpetrators who may be emboldened to retaliate more. 

Board Member Jennifer Ringersen said the city could immediately, but strategically, address pursuing enforcement by moving forward with a letter to business owners and installing signs to monitor how people responded. 

Boukari said during public comment that, although he made the motion at the January CRAAB meeting to move forward with the parking time limit, he personally opposed it.  

He called the signs an “exercise in futility” since the people who know better to take up parking do it anyway, and said it would create tow-away zones in private parking lots for visitors wanting somewhere they can park longer, such as his clients who often spend more than two hours at his office. 

“These are your…neighbors. They’re already not complying,” he said. “Now what on earth makes you think putting up a courtesy sign is going to cause them to comply? Unless you’re going to put teeth in it, as far as I’m concerned, this is all a pipe dream.” 

During the March 24 CRAB meeting, Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) staff proposed that six two-hour parking signs be installed on Main Street for $343 plus additional costs for the posts and installation. Staff said the funds would come from the CRA.  

City Attorney Marian Rush said the board needed to make sure the parking paid for itself; otherwise, other people in the CRA could object under equal protection.  

“If it pays for itself, then you will not be getting the objections of other people in the CRA who are not on Main Street [of] ‘why are you spending more money on them than on us?’” she said. “But if it’s paying for itself, you’re overcoming that objection.” 

Board Member Dayna Williams moved to amend the current parking ordinance to include the time limit on Main Street, but allowed staff to continue with the letter and signs until the new ordinance could come back before the board after they’d had time to review options for enforcement. 

The city of Alachua did not respond to Mainstreet for comment.