This holiday season, downtown Annapolis will be as festive and beautiful as ever. There will be lights galore, and for the three nights of Midnight Madness (December 1, 8 and 15), Downtown Annapolis Partnership and the businesses have organized carolers, hot cocoa, and selfie opportunities to capture those magical holiday memories.
Here are tips on downtown parking and transit options throughout the holiday season.
DOWNTOWN METERED AND RESIDENTIAL PARKING:
Throughout the Hillman Garage rebuild, we have instituted parking changes. Some of these updates are in place to protect on-street parking for residents – like migrating District I and District II to paid parking through ParkMobile (two-hour limit). For best results, download the ParkMobile app ahead of time.
Of course, any resident with a sticker does not have to pay and has no time limit.
Other changes include upgrading downtown’s old parking meters to parking kiosks that service multiple spaces. On-street metered parking can now be paid with coins, credit/debit cards, or through ParkMobile. As new kiosks are activated, older dual-head meters, many inoperable, are removed.
FREE HOLIDAY PARKING (NON-RESIDENT/VISITOR):
Annapolis Mayor Gavin Buckley has again approved free holiday parking to encourage visitors to shop, dine, and stay in downtown. The program offers three hours of free parking at metered spaces. The three-hour limit will be enforced, so if you expect your stay to go longer, please use garage parking further up West Street and take the free downtown shuttle.
VOUCHERS FOR GOTT’S GARAGE (CLOSEST GARAGE TO DOWNTOWN):
As an additional incentive, the City of Annapolis is distributing tens of thousands of free parking validations for Gott’s Garage to retail, restaurant and service businesses in the immediate Hillman Garage user area. This area includes Maryland Avenue and State Circle, Compromise and Dock Streets, Market Space, Duke of Gloucester, Compromise and Main Streets, and small connectors in between.
To use the validation, enter at Gott’s and take a ticket. While shopping or dining downtown, ask for parking validation. Each yellow validation is worth two hours of free parking. When you exit the garage, feed the white ticket, followed by the yellow validation. Validations can be used at both the Gott’s pay station kiosks or exit gates.
PARK PLACE, GRADUATE HOTEL + OTHER CITY GARAGES (ONE PARK PLACE / TAKE FREE MAGENTA SHUTTLE):
Park at Park Place (One Park Place) for $1 for the first hour/$3 for two hours. Take the downtown magenta shuttle, which runs in a continuous loop approximately every five minutes from Park Place to Main Street and back. Download the “TransLoc” app and track the shuttle in real time.
Park free at City garages (Gott’s Court, Knighton, Park Place) on Sunday mornings (enter after 6 a.m. and exit before 2 p.m.).
STATE GARAGES FREE USE:
The State Garage (19 St. John’s Street) offers free parking from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. Monday through Friday and all day on weekends. Whitmore Garage (37 Clay Street) offers free parking on Sundays.
EARN FREE PARKING WITH PARK SHOP & DINE:
PARK, SHOP & DINE: We encourage downtown businesses to participate in the “Park, Shop & Dine” Program by purchasing deeply discounted customer parking validations (.55¢ an hour, minimum validations 100) valid at Gott’s, Knighton, and Park Place garages.
Visitors to Annapolis can enjoy up to four hours of parking free in downtown Annapolis! Park in any of the city-owned garages (Noah Hillman, Gotts Court, Knighton or Park Place), then look for the “Earn Free Parking” sign at your downtown business, or ask if they participate in the Park Shop & Dine. Participating businesses can provide you with a coupon to cover one hour of free parking (most require in-store purchase). You can collect up to four.
If you plan to use more than one Park Shop & Dine validation per visit, do not use the Pay-On-Foot machine. Please proceed to the exit where you will insert the ticket received at entry, followed by up to four validations. Any remaining balance will need to be paid with a credit card. If you plan to use only one Park Shop & Dine validation, you may use either the Pay-On-Foot machine or you may pay at exit.
Business owners – Do your customers like free parking? Of course, they do. Make their visit even by better offering Park & Shop rewards. Get your validation tickets at reduced rates by contacting SP+, parking management firm for the City of Annapolis, at (443) 648-3087 or via through this contact form. You may also visit the SP+ office, located at 60 West Street, Suite 106, from 8 am to 4 pm Monday through Friday.
RESIDENTIAL PARKNG PERMITS
Complete an application to receive a residential parking permit.
