Updated at 1:08 p.m. Thursday, April 15:
Parking in downtown Lawrence will continue to change through the month of April through new kiosk stations, a new online payment portal, and the price of citations doubling.
Beginning Monday, April 19, parking citation fines will increase from $5 to $10, according to a city news release Wednesday, a change first approved by the Lawrence City Commission in August 2019.
Anyone ticketed can pay those fines online immediately beginning Monday, as the city will begin using vehicles equipped with technology that reads license plates to issue the citations, according to the release.
New kiosk stations in parking lots and garages will allow customers to select from multiple language options, and they will accept credit cards, cash and coins as payment methods. Those stations will also allow motorists to pre-pay for multiple hours — or even days at a time — as well as going online to extend a parking session rather than risking a ticket.
The new kiosks will also sell parking permits for Downtown Lawrence, as will a new online portal that will be available at lawrenceks.org/parking on April 26. Those permits can be bought on a quarterly or annual basis, the city said. Permits will still be available to buy at the Municipal Court building, 1 Riverfront Plaza, Suite 310.
Parking lots and garages are free to use until the kiosks are installed and operational. Signage that specifies what date enforcement will begin at each location will be posted in advance at lots and garages, as well as how to use the new systems.
Update:
The city posted on Facebook Thursday to clarify two follow-up questions staff had received:
• “Meters will still be available as a payment option on Mass St. and other streets downtown; just not in long-term parking lots.”
• “Two-hour free lots will remain. The advanced kiosk stations are being added to the long-term parking lots.”
More coverage:
• March 18, 2021: City announces new mobile payment option for downtown parking
