Chapel Hill parking spots hard to find, say residents and visitors

Finding parking in downtown Chapel Hill is not always an easy task.
University Florist and Gift Shop owner Charles House said that just about every customer has difficulty finding a parking spot close to the store.

“Thirty or 40 years ago, you could pull up and park right in front of any store,” he said.

But town officials have repeatedly said Chapel Hill has plenty of parking.

“We have pretty sufficient inventory,” Chapel Hill Parking Superintendent Brenda Jones said. “In general, unless there is a special University event, we have not experienced lots filling up.”

Jones said the town has acquired many new parking areas since Lot 5, on the corner of Franklin and Church Streets, closed in January to begin construction on 140 West, a mixed-use development.

Since Lot 5 closed, new public lots have been made available, including a lot between the Courtyard and Lantern restaurant with 48 spaces, and another on Basnight Lane with 57 spaces.

The town also purchased a new lot on S. Graham Street but has not decided when those spots will be open to the public, Jones said.

Chapel Hill Town Council candidate Jason Baker said he believes the town has been continually improving its parking situation.

He cited 181 new hourly spaces in the past four years, parking meters that accept credit cards and signs that make it easy to locate public parking as evidence of progress.

“The biggest challenge may not be Chapel Hill residents but visitors, who bring with them expectations based on their familiarities from places around the country,” he said.

Oftentimes visitors expect to find available free parking and are not happy with paying hourly fees, Baker said.

But many people who are used to having to pay hourly fees to park often find Chapel Hill’s parking situation reasonable, Jones said.

Assistant Parking Superintendent Chris McClay said parking complaints arise when the school year begins.

“It’s not that the town doesn’t have enough parking, it’s the University and the town together,” he said.

McClay said the town and the University have been discussing constructing a parking deck, that would be owned by UNC and operated by Chapel Hill, to meet the need for more on-campus parking. No plans for the project have been made.

Darren Abrecht, a webmaster on campus, said his parking spot at Cobb Parking Deck is too expensive and he hopes any new parking option would be more reasonably priced.

“I used to do park and ride, but that was too time consuming,” he said. “I think the solution would have to be building a new parking deck.”

Despite town efforts, House, whose business has been at the same location since 1946, said he and other businesses still await more accessible parking options.

“I understand the town wants to be walking-friendly, but walking is not suitable in every situation.”

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at city@dailytarheel.com.

_An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the location of one of the new parking lots. The story has been updated to reflect the correction. The Daily Tar Heel apologizes for the error. _