Paid parking period in St. Joseph comes to a close

ST. JOSEPH, Mich. -- Paid parking in downtown St. Joseph has been a big topic of conversation for years, and now that Labor Day has come and gone residents, vacationers, and business owners are sharing some of their thoughts.

In the summer of 2025, the city implemented a paid parking program downtown but after backlash from the community and A.D.A. concerns surrounding the parking kiosks, it was quickly dissolved.

Fast forward a year and city leaders took steps to re-introduce the program with input from the community.

Now that the paid parking season has ended as of 6 p.m. on Labor Day, owner of Fuzzy Butz Pet Boutique and Bakery, Alex Strunk, believes there have been improvements the second time around.

“It's been a lot better than last year,” Strunk said. “I know their main goal was to increase turnover, so I think they’ve achieved that. Most of the time when I look out there, there’s at least one spot available each block and that’s what they were going for.”

Strunk also believes the plan will run into some extra challenges next summer, due to several city development projects.

“The Marquette development may start back here, so you’re going to lose a lot of parking spaces there during that time and then the year after Main Street reconstruction starts,” Strunk said.