City of Eureka Launching New Passport Parking Program April 1std
Press release from the City of Eureka:
The City of Eureka will begin a new parking management program using the Passport Parking mobile app on April 1, 2026, in certain Downtown and Old Town parking lots.
The system allows residents and visitors to pay for parking by phone, replacing traditional meters in those locations. This is the same system currently used by Cal Poly Humboldt for its public parking.
This new program is part of the City’s effort to better manage parking resources. It implements recommendations from the 2022 Old Town & Downtown Parking Study, which identified the need to modernize our parking management and improve parking turnover in high-demand areas so customers and visitors can more easily find parking near businesses.
Parking in participating lots will cost $1.10 per hour and will be enforced from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Monday through Saturday. Sunday and holidays will not be metered.
New signage will be installed throughout participating lots, with instructions for downloading the app, locating the correct zone, and starting a session. The app sends reminders before time expires and allows users to extend sessions remotely.
Parking permits for Downtown employees and eligible residents will continue to be available, offering longer-term options for regular parkers. Businesses are encouraged to make employees aware of the Downtown Employee Parking Permit Program, which allows employees to park without paying hourly meters through an annual permit.
Information about parking permits, eligibility, and application steps is available on the City’s parking
page: https://www.eurekaca.gov/838/Parking-Permits-and-Information.
Residents, employees, and visitors who frequently park in Downtown or Old Town are encouraged to review program details and download the Passport Parking app before the April 1st launch.
Information, including a parking lot map and instructions for using the app, is available at: https://www.eurekaca.gov/1089/Passport-Parking-Program
Join the discussion! For rules visit: https://kymkemp.com/commenting-rules
Comments system how-to: https://wpdiscuz.com/community/postid/10599/
What if I don’t have a phone?
Pay for parking, go to an event, lose your phone, come back to your car with a ticket because you weren’t able to increase your parking time on your phone.
Yeah that’s a great idea.
So it’s a bad idea because you MIGHT lose your phone? If that’s your worry then plan better and put enough time on the meter to cover your event time. Parking meter apps are the norm in pretty much every city I’ve been to in the last few years. I love them because I can add time if needed without running back to my car. And I don’t have to rummage up coins.
How often do you lose your phone?
Versus not needing it for absolutely every minute of your day? I don’t. I know how to disconnect. Also, are we going to expect out of town folks to just download yet another app to a device they might only use for one day? Or never really, in lots where the app serves? And link it to a bank account? There’s a lot of parking meter scams out there that even I seem to get a couple every time I put in my cell number for parking in places like UCSF lots and especially near the ballpark. There’s a huge data leak in these, or very lax security and I would be wary of some 3rd party small city IT department idea of an app is going to keep me from being charged $110 an hour instead of $1.10. It’s not an unheard of or irrational thing.
What is the plan to aid people that have phone without data service? Will there be a free device that allows prepaid parking and can be refilled?
Agree completely. Flip phone users have not been considered. Employees will have to compete with the public for very limited spaces. The shit show in eureka is about to start. The so called “team” that is using a Cal poly model are idiots. Student parking at the university is much different than an employee in public parking in old town and using that model just shows what idiots they are and how this is going to blow up. And just wait until the new housing units are opened. Especially the one on G St. between seventh and eighth. Those people will be competing with all the residents on G St. F St. and others. They will be parking in front of other peoples houses all day and night. Good grief, the war is about to start in Eureka.
You can pay at a kiosk and not use your phone.
do you think the city plans to install eleven, one at each pay lot.
I wonder what happens during the not infrequent connectivity failures that Eureka has? Will they be prey to local hackers? Or pranksters? So many interesting things could happen. Surely someone did a benefit to cost ratio?
Don’t worry- the Eureka City Council will soon enough make parking your vehicle a thing of the past. The plans to convert parking lots into “affordable” housing is just beginning. This is only the early shitshow to discourage parking, which will later be non-existent. So they’re doing everybody a favor by easing us into the near future reality of never parking! Ain’t they just swell?! Maybe they’ll have large parking lots just outside of town w/ shuttle service for your shopping and visiting needs….a future car-free city is on it’s way, so progressive!
I dont have to pay for parking at Amazon or Home depot.
And you don’t get your car broken into, phone stolen, or harassed for money by a homeless person!
You have no dog in this hunt. Please stand down. Thank you for your consideration in this matter, Mr. Clark.
Actually i do. I pay thousands of dollars in TAXes to Eureka every year. I will reduce this as much a legally possible now.
Parking fees…???
Like folks need another reason to avoid frequenting Eureka…
I haven’t visited Old Town or shopped there in a very long time..
“April 1 STD”…???
Not exactly a selling point…
That’s definitely another reason to avoid Eureka…
Emphasis on “The County Seat”…
When it comes to frequenting Eureka, I think that I will just opt for abstinence, instead…
I wouldn’t go there by choice if they paid me to park there…
All of that parking has been metered for many, many years. This is just a different type of meter.
That is correct, but how can a person pay for parking if they do not have a smart phone?
By buying an annual permit?
There are usually kiosks where you can pay without a phone
usually is the key word. this is eureka. i don’t see them in the plan. i don’t allow apps on my phone so i guess i won’t be able to park.
More hurdles to eventually discourage almost everybody from going there…genius!
I’d say 99% of the population has smart phones. Even the homeless have them so I don’t think it’s unreasonable to expect to have to use one.
Recently I saw a post about someone speculating that Apple and restaurants were in cahoots with the app requirements since apps use storage and we often have to pay for extra storage. Whether someone has a smart phone may not be the only issue. JS.
Don’t follow leaders
Watch the parking meters
Subterranean Homesick Blues