Youngstown mulls licensing parking lots

YOUNGSTOWN — The city is considering licensing downtown public parking lots and garages, charging $1 per space annually.

The proposal, sponsored by Mayor John A. McNally, will be in front of city council Wednesday. But McNally said council will refer the proposal to the planning commission, which will meet next Tuesday to hear public comments on the matter.

“We’re doing it to get uniformity of the downtown parking lots,” McNally said. “It will help better market parking in downtown, and it will make sure all the parking lots look good.”

Terry Coyne of Mary Coyne Investments, a Cleveland company that owns numerous downtown parking lots, said, however, the family business is barely making it in Youngstown, and a decision to charge $1-per-spot annually probably would result in the company closing at least one or two of its lots and increasing its parking rate.

“The returns haven’t been the greatest, but we’re here for the long term,” Coyne said. “It doesn’t seem fair to target specific groups. It doesn’t seem like a good business decision.”

For the complete story, read Wednesday's Vindicator and Vindy.com