District to charge developers more cash for parking

Developers who build in Squamish will be charged more for paying cash in place of parking.

At a meeting on July 6, council amended the ‘payment in lieu of off-street parking’ bylaw.

The district has now increased the cost from $15,000 to $25,000 per parking stall.

The payment-in-lieu-of-parking bylaw was first adopted on February 6, 2018, and it established per parking stall payment at $15,000.

In March last year, the council accepted a Downtown Parkade Study, and asked staff to pursue the option of increasing the per stall fees initially to $25,000.

The district is finally aiming for a per stall rate of $65,000. The district will also be exploring pay parking downtown this year.

In 2022, the staff will also work on scoping and engaging the community on a pay parking program, and plan to refresh data on parking utilization study.