Calgary Parking Authority pays it forward

A number of vehicles were abandoned on city streets when flood waters took over.

The Calgary Parking Authority suffered over $9 million in damages to its infrastructure from the massive flooding in the core last month and is donating the revenue collected during the state of emergency to flood relief efforts.

The CPA announced a return to normal parking operations on Monday and says it will donate $349,000 collected from surface parking lots and on-street areas during the crisis to flood relief.

The parking authority says it was impacted by $9.87 Million in flood-related damages to facilities and operations and that it was hardest hit in the Civic Plaza Parkade, which remains closed.

The CPA says regular rates for on-street parking and for all of its surface parking lots and parkades are now in effect and enforcement activities in all areas have also returned to normal.

"With the return to normal operations in the downtown and other areas, we need to ensure parking is available for those who want to access businesses in these areas," said General Manager Troy McLeod. "Our goal is to help manage the flow of traffic and ensure that posted time restrictions are being respected."

Parking officers will not be enforcing complaints about recreational vehicles, detached trailers, residential permit zones and abandoned vehicles right now.

Those people who are using their RVs for temporary shelter while their homes are repaired will be allowed to park on city streets for more than 36 hours and are not required to be attached to a vehicle.

Officials say they will continue to work with flood-affected communities, like Chinatown, Inglewood, the Beltline and Mission, to support parking relief on an individual basis.

For more information, contact the CPA office at 403-537-7000 or visit the Calgary Parking Authority website.