Several residential apartment buildings in the city have started charging for the use of visitor parking spaces, prompting concerns about the impact on residents and service providers, as well as added expense for those using the spots in the midst of a pandemic.
“This is a cash grab,” said Danielle, who lives in one such building on Willow Road. “People probably don’t have a lot of disposable income, that’s just the nature of renting.”
Danielle asked that her last name not be used out of concerns it could lead to reprisal.
GuelphToday visited several apartment buildings throughout the city and found paid visitor parking spaces at many of them – older and newer – with various owners and/or management firms.
In each case, visitor parking is to be paid through the use of smartphone apps, and costing as much as $12 for a day.
Attempts to reach property owners were generally unsuccessful, though one noted the move followed a change in ownership last fall. She declined to comment on what prompted the decision or provide her name.
Though paid visitor parking at residential buildings seems to be relatively new in Guelph, there are reports of it happening in municipalities throughout the province.
It’s been allowed in Guelph since 1968, though previously the tactic was only employed at business complexes such as medical buildings and hotels, as well as the hospital, explained Doug Godfrey, the city’s manager of operations.
“The rules are set by the property owners themselves,” he said, noting some use a permit system or gates, while others have parking metres or use an app to collect payment.
When it comes to enforcing paid visitor parking rules, property owners need the appropriate business licence, Godfrey said, and can hand out official City of Guelph tickets.
“People that receive the ticket would be able to dispute it no differently than any other ticket the city issues,” he said, noting the city receives funds generated through ticketing while the property owner collects parking fees.
“There are a lot of people who are hard-put to afford rent, let alone parking,” commented Coun. Phil Allt, who was surprised to learn this is happening at numerous apartment buildings. “You can’t presume that a visitor has any more money than somebody who’s on a fixed income.”
“It’s one more thing for people to tackle,” said Danielle, who, like Allt, worries about the impact on seniors in particular.
“I imagine if they have grandkids or people visiting, I feel like they’re going to be the least likely to want people to incur those costs,” she continued. “They’re not going to want their grandkids to pay $6 to visit them.”
Mayor Cam Guthrie said he first learned of paid visitor parking spaces in Guelph on Monday, but acknowledges there isn’t anything the city can do to remedy concerns people have about the practice.
“It is, at the end of the day, a private arrangement. It has nothing to do with the city being involved in it,” he said.
“I don’t like rules changing mid-stream, so I feel for any tenants that may have a new fee imposed on them, especially during this time, but it is something that needs to be addressed directly between the tenant and the landlord or the tenant and the landlord management of the building.”
Allt wonders about the impact this will have on service providers and volunteers who often visit apartment buildings to deliver meals, etc.
“There’s all sorts of people who go into these buildings,” he said. “I would have been pretty annoyed if I was delivering food … to come out to discover I had a ticket.”
