{"id":429976,"date":"2026-08-11T18:52:39","date_gmt":"2026-08-11T18:52:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/429976\/"},"modified":"2026-08-11T18:52:39","modified_gmt":"2026-08-11T18:52:39","slug":"shoppers-push-back-against-the-valley-plaza-paid-parking-option","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/429976\/","title":{"rendered":"Shoppers push back against the Valley Plaza paid parking option"},"content":{"rendered":"

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) \u2014 The hunt for a better parking spot at Valley Plaza may be over, if you\u2019re willing to pay for it. <\/p>\n

The Bakersfield mall is rolling out a premier parking option, which has sparked plenty of conversation among shoppers.<\/p>\n

The mall has introduced paid parking spaces near select entrances. For $2 an hour, shoppers can pay for what Valley Plaza is calling convenience. <\/p>\n

\"\"Dozens of \u2018Preferred Paid Parking\u2019 signs are plastered across the Valley Plaza in Bakersfield. Shoppers will now have to pay $2 an hour if they want to park in the front of the mall. <\/p>\n

\u201cParking can be a pain \u2013 having to drive around looking for a spot \u2013 we get it, so we have implemented it at some of our properties, including Valley Plaza,\u201d said Valley Plaza spokesperson Lindsay Khan. \u201cThis preferred parking program where those who want to park up front \u2013 they don\u2019t want to have to look for a spot \u2013 they have that option.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not everyone is sold on the idea.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt can\u2019t be convenience if you have to park further or pay to park closer to the mall,\u201d said Bakersfield resident Gregory Conley. \u201cI mean that is a big inconvenience, you know?\u201d<\/p>\n

17 News paid a visit to Valley Plaza, where not one person was a fan of the new option, many of them surprised that the entire front parking lot was becoming a \u201cpreferred parking\u201d zone. <\/p>\n

\t
\n\t\tHomeless shelter beds full as hundreds sleep in heat at Kern River\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s going on here? The parking lot is full over there. I see all of these signs \u2013 are we Downtown LA now?\u201d said Bakersfield resident Michael Curtis. \u201c(They\u2019re) trying to just take all of our money.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some customers didn\u2019t see the point of paying for parking.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just don\u2019t understand why,\u201d said Elizabeth Hardison. \u201cI mean, this is Valley Plaza \u2013 like l I\u2019ve been coming here my whole life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others said the move is downright wrong. <\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s right because we already come to shop here,\u201d said Jesus Lopez. \u201cWe pay taxes, and all that stuff. So, I don\u2019t see why they should be charging for parking.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even mall employees are upset.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had my car broken into. My coworkers have also had their cars broken into multiple times. So it\u2019s a matter of our safety,\u201d said Genessie Falk.<\/p>\n

Enforcement for preferred parking has already begun. Mall security is handing out citations to those who don\u2019t pay to park in the front. <\/p>\n

Khan says people still have options if they dont want to pay. She said out of thousands of parking spots at Valley Plaza, only a few hundred are preferred parking. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf you don\u2019t want this option, there is still ample places to park for free,\u201d Khan said. \u201cAgain, this is just an opportunity for convenience. That\u2019s all it is.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) \u2014 The hunt for a better parking spot at Valley Plaza may be over, if…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":429977,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[151,153,152,735,63711,171002,171003,27786],"class_list":["post-429976","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-bakersfield","tag-bakersfield","tag-bakersfield-headlines","tag-bakersfield-news","tag-kern-county","tag-paid-parking","tag-preferred-parking","tag-premier","tag-valley-plaza"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/429976","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=429976"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/429976\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/429977"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=429976"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=429976"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=429976"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}