City of New Orleans, LA
09/06/2024 | Press release | Archived content
Office of Nighttime Economy Seeks to Expand Safe and Affordable Parking for Local Hospitality Workers and Culture-Bearers
September 6, 2024 | From City of New Orleans
Office of Nighttime Economy Seeks to Expand Safe and Affordable Parking for Local Hospitality Workers and Culture-Bearers
NEW ORLEANS - The City of New Orleans today announced that the Office of Nighttime Economy (ONE) has released a Request for Information (RFI) to inform the creation of an Affordable Parking Program designed to support workers in the service, hospitality and cultural sectors.
This initiative addresses a significant transportation challenge for workers in restaurants, hotels and entertainment venues across the French Quarter and downtown New Orleans. The program is intended to increase the number of deeply affordable parking spaces in the downtown area and to provide an online inventory of available spaces, along with an easy-to-use application process. These resources are intended to enhance the quality of life and cost-of-living for these essential workers and improve the local economy as a whole.
"Our office recognizes the difficulty in finding safe and affordable parking downtown for nighttime industry workers," said ONE Director Mike Ince. "Parking and transportation as a whole are monumental barriers that our nighttime service industry workforce faces every day. From accepting a parking ticket so you can be on time for your shift or walking from surrounding neighborhoods at night, we understand the ongoing issues a person may face when simply trying to get to and from work. Business owners and workers alike have stressed the importance of finding affordable and safe solutions to downtown parking and we look forward to working with all stakeholders in developing a long-term solution."
ONE is asking for input from all parties in hospitality and culture, from workers to business owners and managers, to human resource officers and parking providers. Short online surveys and a downloadable request for information from parking providers can all be found at nola.gov/night/parking.
ONE's initiative is modeled on a longstanding program for service workers in downtown Austin, Texas. In New Orleans, parking operators in the Central Business District, French Quarter, Tremé and Marigny areas are being asked to consider providing additional discounted rates and dedicated spaces for hospitality workers. Parking operators are encouraged to assess their available inventory and provide an estimated number of spaces to ONE. Parking operators would set discounted rates and facilitate an application process through a dedicated webpage maintained by ONE. Workers will need to verify their employment at a designated hospitality business to qualify for the discounts.
Next steps include engaging downtown parking operators in discussions and developing an interactive parking map and inventory of parking resources for hospitality workers.
More information can be found at nola.gov/night/parking, or contact ONE Community Projects Manager Robert Henig Bell at [email protected].
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