Free parking to disappear at Art Works
Less than good news reported by Style Weekly. Starting 1/16 if you head down to Art Works or Plant Zero to work in a studio or check out one of the many events, plan to pay if you usually park in the big lot next to Art Works. The addition of pay parking has Glenda Kotchish, co-owner of Art Works concerned about attendance. The owner of the spot Fountainhead Properties has contracted with Central Parking and will charge $9 per day and $6 on evenings and weekends.
Fountainhead co-owner and president Tom Papa says he knew charging for parking would be unpopular, but he had no choice.
“What we’re trying to do is pay for some of our expenses,” he says. Fountainhead pays $7,000 per year for taxes and stormwater runoff fees, Papa says, plus around $600 per month to illuminate the lot.Moreover, Papa says, Fountainhead had no control over who used the lot. One man used to keep nine vans parked there. “Everybody here is either an artist or a nonprofit,” he says, but somebody must pay. “If somebody can come up with a better way, I’m all ears.”
