The Calgary Parking Authority (CPA) is looking at other ways of making money from its facilities, which are seeing less parking demand these days.
The city-owned agency is trying to ramp up its event rental business.
Jennifer Whitaker with the CPA said there’s been a noticeable drop in parking demand in the off-peak hours on weekends and evenings.
“Our lots are not as utilized as they would be during the week, obviously, so what we’re trying to do is find creative ways to optimize those spaces on non-peak hours,” she said.
The CPA’s revenue from its parkades and surface lots dropped by over $4.2 million from 2015 to 2016.
Whitaker said they’ve rented out some of their lots for movie shoots and for farmers markets, but she is hoping to attract other short-term tenants for the “big open spaces.”
Whitaker said it’s too early to know if the strategy will open up much of a new revenue stream.
