Parking in Whangārei city centre is one of the biggest frustrations for businesses and residents, but Whangārei District Council believes there are enough car parks for now.
The spotlight is on the central business district (CBD) as more than 10 businesses have shut this year, with Rathbone Cafe being the latest.
A Mayoral Inner City Taskforce was set up to help, and a recent survey for the group found parking was the second-biggest concern for CBD businesses, after safety.
While more parking is planned in the long term, the council will first upgrade its parking technology, so motorists pay using their vehicles’ licence plates.
This will make parking enforcement, and data collection, easier and cheaper.
Deputy Mayor Scott McKenzie said it would allow the council to introduce dynamic pricing, such as possibly allowing shoppers to have the first hour free.
NorthChamber chairman and CBD shop owner Tim Robinson said that, if Whangārei wanted a thriving retail and hospitality centre, there had to be good traffic flow and available car parking.
“I want to be clear: as a city, we’re 100% reliant on people driving in.
“We market ourselves as being a lifestyle city, where people buy 20 minutes out of town – they will never have a bus nor ride a bike.”
He was supportive of new parking technology if it included a period of free parking, such as one or two hours.
Businesses had already paid for customer parking in their rates, which were 5.5 times greater than residential rates, he said.
Long-term, he wanted the council to be innovative with car parking.
His vision was for a multistorey building on the Vine St carpark, with shops and hospitality on the ground floor, offices and inner-city living, plus parking levels.
Parking ‘abysmal’, residents say
Northlanders called Whangārei’s parking “abysmal” and said it was a key reason for the “town dying”.
Whangārei resident Tyson Harding said people would not go to the CBD if they thought parking was too difficult.
He didn’t mind paying for parking, as long as it fairly reflected how long he stayed.
“Sometimes you just want to go for 20 minutes or drop a book off at the library, and you have to pay for the full hour.”
He usually parked at the Avenues and walked into town or used the top floor of the John St carpark.
His pet peeve? “People taking car parks but going to work [all day]. It’s not letting people come in and have these spaces.”
Kirsten Davidson said she usually came into town in the afternoons and found spaces reasonably available at Laurie Hall Park and Forum North, which were both $2 an hour.
Her pet peeve was small parking spaces, which made some of them too difficult to park in.
She thought more people would come to the Cameron St Mall if there were more parking nearby.
Whangārei resident Summer, who did not want to give her surname, said she found it difficult to get a park by the courts.
She thought there would be more foot traffic in the CBD if there were more free parks available, and wanted to see more accessible parking.
Not all Whangārei residents had frustrations with parking, however.
Ross Davies said he had no problem because he parked at the John St carpark using the council’s concession for people over 70.
“I think the over-70 free parking is fantastic.”
Being retired, Davies said he avoided peak times and had no parking peeves.
Parking as a Service to start this year
To improve parking technology, the council will soon put out a tender for a 10‑year Parking as a Service contract.
This is expected to save it almost $12 million and prevent it from having to pay for upgrades to its parking meters, including some of the oldest coin-operated machines in the country.
Transportation strategy and planning lead Nick Marshall said wayfinding, to let people know where parks were available, was an optional add-on.
The move followed a parking survey last year, which showed people were generally supportive of technology changes, but opposed an increase in parking charges, he said.
The council was also investigating buying land for future parking, with sites near State Highway 1 considered the most suitable.
Securing land would come before building multi-storey parking, because of the high cost.
The council would also investigate upgrading the John St carpark, which had less than 50% occupancy, said Jim Sephton, general manager transport and community infrastructure.
“We know it is not utilised through the year. People have concerns about safety and security, the size of the bays.”
The investigations would be part of a John St upgrade, aimed at turning the street into a pedestrian corridor, linking the waterfront to the city centre.
The $29 million project aims to remove 47 on-street parks and make John St one way. It includes an upgrade to the Robert St/Walton St intersection to reinstate right turns.
The council will consult on John St upgrade proposals in the coming weeks.
Council income from parking fines:
- 2022-23: $738,900 (cost of enforcement, $817,800)
- 2023-24: $785,600 (cost of enforcement, $712,000)
- 2024-25: $1,609,000* (cost of enforcement, $722,400)
* This increase corresponds to the Government’s increase in infringement values.
Top streets for parking fines:
- Bank St
- Town Basin carpark
- John St carpark
Best places to park:
- John St carpark ($2 anr hour, max 3 hours)
- The Avenues/Kauika Rd area
- Whangārei Aquatic Centre
- Railway Rd
Denise Piper is a news reporter for the Northern Advocate, focusing on health and business. She has more than 20 years in journalism and is passionate about covering stories that make a difference.