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Facing a massive budget deficit, the city of San Diego has turned to parking fees to help generate new revenue.
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Thinking about going to the San Diego Zoo in the new year? You may have to factor in an additional $8 or $16 to your trip budget.
That’s what the popular Balboa Park institution plans on charging city of San Diego residents and the general public, respectively, to park in its lot starting Jan. 5.
Keyword: nonmembers. Those with an annual pass won’t have to fork up extra cash to park their car as long as they register it with the zoo. If you forget, you could be in for a surprise ticket — or even have your vehicle towed.
Why now: The zoo says it’s charging for parking to align with the new controversial fees around the rest of the park. While the zoo’s long been able to charge for parking, its lease with the city (yes, the zoo doesn’t own its land) prevented it from charging different rates for different kinds of visitors — until now.
What’s still TBD: The zoo has yet to share information on its parking profit-sharing agreement with San Diego. City officials initially estimated $15.5 million in projected annual revenue from Balboa Park parking fees, including the zoo. But last month, a staff report shared amid outcry over the park’s proposed parking pass fees reduced the total estimate significantly to $2.9 million.
The free option: Zoogoers can take a free shuttle from the Lower Inspiration Point lot, where you can park for three hours for free (though you may have to make your trip a bit more speedy to see all the exhibits in that amount of time).
Learn more about recent parking changes across the city of San Diego in our roundup below.
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News: Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Giovanni joined us October 2022 and manages the overall user experience across our suite of news products and integrations. His love for UX came from a background of innovation in journalism, including 360 video production and social media. Giovanni is a native San Diegan, proud University of Southern…
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