On Parking

If you already live in Seattle and work downtown, this post is not for you, as you probably take a bus to work. But if you don't live on the bus line, your company doesn't pay for parking, or you are in the interviewing process and don't know the city very well, you are most likely wondering if people really pay $26 to park all day. And the answer to that, of course, is no. They don't. (And if they do, I officially judge them...)

For about six months this problem wasn't applicable to me. I either took a bus or train to work and never had to worry about parking. But than a colleague fell in love with Salsa and tried to get everyone in the department to sign up for it. Nobody did, except me. The irony is that she only lasted a couple months. I became addicted. If you've ever done Salsa in Seattle, you'll note that the places to go out and dance aren't exactly located in prime locale. Very soon I realized that on days I have class I better take my car, or else...

For a while I parked in the cheapest "early bird" garage that crossed my path when getting off the freeway. In before 9:30, 11 hours maximum, $12 for the day. At first I parked twice a week. Then I started spending the night at a friends' house in downtown, so parking days went up to 4. Then there was a "lazy day" when I just didn't "feel like" taking the bus. So I parked pretty much every day. The total came to $60. Not that much, if you are making anything over a starters' salary. But still pretty stupid, for parking...

A wise person I know lives by the quote "people don't plan to fail, they fail to plan." I realized I gotta plan something fast, or my budget will fail miserably. So I came up with several options to lower the parking bill.

1. The garage that's NOT on your way off the freeway costs $10 before 9:00am for 10 hours. It's located on Union, between second st. and third st. Pros: This lowers your weekly parking bill by $10. (Save $520 a year and get a pair of cute shoes!) Cons: They are downright mean. If you stay over 10 hours by even 5 minutes they WILL charge you the extra $15.00. And if you try to beg for mercy the manager will yell about how irresponsible you are. (But WILL refund the money if it's really only 5 minutes and your first time. This time around I figured $15 bucks is worth the embarrassment, but I never came back to that garage...) I'm sure that if you do your research, you will find another cheap lot. I hear the one by Pike Place Market has good prices too, but I personally have never parked there.

2. If you aren't afraid to walk a block to a bus line, or if you work closer to Capitol Hill, go ahead and park in the garage on Pike and Summit. Pros: Their early bird special is $6.50 for 12 hours as long as you're in by 10:00a.m. Walk a block to Pine to catch a bus downtown and you save $27.50 a week. ($1430 a year -- enough for two months rent on a crappy one-bedroom, or a pair of Prada boots.) Cons: it will take you slightly longer to get to work than if you parked in the garage of your office building. Waking up 10 minutes earlier might be required.

3. Use this one only if you live in Northern Queen Anne. As you might know, Queen Anne Ave. becomes residential at Smith St. Parking there is un-zoned and free! Grab a spot, and catch bus 3 or 4 downtown. This is the only place that I've figured out so far, but I am pretty positive that there are more streets like this in Seattle. You just have to do a little homework and figure out which one works for you. Pros: free parking! Cons: quite a bus ride to downtown, and probably inaccessible during winter ice and snow days.

4. This solution worked best for me. Use it if you are commuting from the south (as in way further south than Tukwila...) and have time between work and whatever activity required you to bring a car after work (like Salsa.) Instead of driving into downtown, I get off exit 156 and park at Interurban Ave. Park and Ride. It just so happens that the exact time I get there bus 161 pulls up - only runs during peak hours and stops right in front of my building. You can also catch 150 - runs more often, but takes a little longer to get to downtown. For me, there are actually no cons with this option. Parking is free. (I save $60 a week, $3120 a year...) and I actually get to work faster than I would driving, because the bus takes the carpool lane, and I can't. And if you drive from the south, you know that you are guaranteed to hit traffic at the Michigan Curves. Of course, getting your car after work might take a little longer than taking an elevator down, but I have time to kill between work and Salsa anyways. So it works out.

Let me know if you have parking tricks people should know about! Leave a comment.

My Observant Creativity: