urbanMSP

I could see 2 hour limit until 6pm, 4 hour limit after 6pm making sense. There's a split like that in Uptown and elsewhere...seems to work fine.

The problem with limits now is that the app has rendered them useless. You can just pay once an hour from the app in your cubicle and park in a one-hour limit spot all day.

While the app may allow you to do that, certainly that runs afoul of the law, no?

I'd think you could still be ticketed if your car sat in the same 2-hour spot for 8 hours. You might have a better chance of getting the ticket dropped by crying "but the app said...", but I think legally you'd be in the wrong.

If people are hogging meters then Parking Enforcement should be out there chalking tires with a vengeance.

Surely the app could be changed so that you could not renew a meter? Of course, you could always find a friend to renew it for you. Nothing beats having someone doing actual enforcement, but that would cost more and in this case, it would not increase revenue, only availability.

Surely the app could be changed so that you could not renew a meter? Of course, you could always find a friend to renew it for you. Nothing beats having someone doing actual enforcement, but that would cost more and in this case, it would not increase revenue, only availability.

My internal cycnic tells me they do not do this because, while illegal, allowing users to renew from the app maximizes revenue.

The ticket from exceeding the limit would certainly increase revenue.

Surely the app could be changed so that you could not renew a meter? Of course, you could always find a friend to renew it for you. Nothing beats having someone doing actual enforcement, but that would cost more and in this case, it would not increase revenue, only availability.

My internal cycnic tells me they do not do this because, while illegal, allowing users to renew from the app maximizes revenue.

I agree.

I guess the correct solution in this case is to increase the hourly rate on the street so that it is less expensive to put your car in an all-day contract lot. That would move the regular cheats off the street.

I think simply reducing the maximum parking time would be plenty to increase transient availability of parking in the North Loop. If reduced to two hours that employee would have to feed the meter every two hours 4-5 times a day. People would certainly try to feed the meter all day but at some point we'll forget and get a ticket. That increased hassle and the sting of a $47 (i think) ticket would likely be enough to move him/her to a pay lot.

Also of note, when I worked in the loop I totally meter parked all day. That was with quarters.

I know multiple people who live in South Mpls (one right in Uptown), work in the North Loop, and park on-street all day.

^Many of the people I know that live in the southwestern quadrant of the city and work in the North Loop do the same. There's just enough on- and off-street parking as well as terrible transit access to much of the neighborhood. It's about 40 minutes from Uptown Transit Station to an office building like 800 N. Washington Ave. with a transfer to boot!

How great does an express bus that runs from North Loop to W Diamond Lake sound? N on Lyndale, left on 36th St, up Hennepin onto 94, exiting onto Olson/6th Ave, left onto 5th St, right on 10th Ave, right onto Washington with a terminus at ramp c.

Yeah transit to the North Loop should really be addressed. We live in the Lyndale neighborhood, and my wife drives to work in the Tractorworks Building most days (bikes sometimes, transit NEVER) because it simply takes too long to take a bus (and her employer provides free parking).

I like Grant's idea, but might suggest exiting 94 on Broadway/Washington and just going straight down Washington to Ramp C.

How long did this thing take to get up and running? http://www.startribune.com/route-494-su ... 368792891/

Now that the North Loop is getting quite the concentration of jobs... Why not work to extend more bus service to terminate further up Washington? Of course, if we ever replace the freeway ramp viaducts with a 4th St boulevard, it could have dedicated transit lanes that connect right into 4th St downtown transitway at 2nd Ave.

Only reason I mentioned the Olson exit was to serve Ford Center, Be the Match, and the future office buildings along that stretch. Could be an alternate route that only runs at rush hour. But hey! Now that I actually have time to do non-school things, I'll draw up some concepts.

Prepare yourselves!

http://www.citypages.com/arts/upstairs- ... /408605555

Could they actually be taking the corner spot? Seems like that would command a higher rent than this concept could afford.

I think it's probably upstairs? Based on the name?

Hey! we've got another proposal! First completely new one in a while it seems:

http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/n ... field.html

Another music venue by United Properties, this one with a hotel on top and overlooking the new Target Field Station platform 2. Not really a surface parking lot biting the dust but another hole filled nonetheless.