Starting on October 31, Oakland residents and visitors will have increased access to secure and affordable parking at the Franklin Plaza Parking Garage, located at 19th and Franklin Streets in Downtown Oakland.
The garage has 373 spots. While it used to charge $6 an hour, it will now offer “Five after Five” — that is, a flat rate of $5 on weekdays after 5:00 pm, and the same rate all day on weekends. The garage is also extending its hours of operation. It will now be open from 7:00 am to 10 pm Monday through Wednesday; 7:00 am to 3:00 am Thursday and Friday; 12:00 pm to 3 am on Saturday; and 12:00 pm to 10:00 pm on Sunday. Additionally, the garage will stay open until 1:30 am on any night there is a concert at the Fox Theater.
The pilot program will run through the holiday season, and is intended to bring more shoppers and visitors Downtown. Thao had this to say:
“Our goal here is very simple. Activated public spaces are safer, and not just that but more folks on the street having fun, catching a show or catching dinner, that means that there’s going to be more people on the street and that means less crime and more businesses [sic] for our downtown merchants, which of course means that we, the city, can collect those tax dollars and give it right back through services.”
To launch the program, Thao’s office collaborated with councilmember Carroll Fife, who represents downtown Oakland, as well as at-large councilmember Rebecca Kaplan. She says their offices were responding to the requests of many downtown businesses, including the Fox Theater and Bar Shiru.
There will be a new lighted path on the two blocks between the Fox Theater and the garage, which will be staffed by private security working to look out for visitors and prevent vehicle break-ins.
Thao says Five After Five is just one way her office plans to cut crime in Oakland. Her strategy also includes new automated license plate readers, a citywide camera network, new specialized teams at the Oakland Police Department, and police foot patrols in commercial districts.
