Free off-street holiday weekend parking offered again in Village

GROSSE POINTE CITY — Supporting local businesses will once again be easier this holiday season, thanks to free parking in certain places in The Village.

As has been the case since 2013, shoppers will be treated to free parking in off-street Village lots on Saturdays and Sundays between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Those dates include Nov. 30 and Dec. 1, Dec. 7 and 8, Dec. 14 and 15, and Dec. 21 and 22. In addition, the Friday after Thanksgiving, Nov. 29 — aka Black Friday — will also have free Village parking. This coincides with the Grosse Pointe Chamber of Commerce’s Grosse Pointe Santa Claus Parade, which takes place that Friday morning and concludes in The Village.

Main Street Grosse Pointe Executive Director Cindy Willcock said the free parking is offered “as a way to spur people to shop.”

“This is a really good marketing tool,” Willcock said. “It helps create a positive image of The Village.”

It’s a collaboration between the city and the Grosse Pointe Village Downtown Development Association, which is now largely synonymous with Main Street Grosse Pointe. The estimated lost revenue to the city’s parking fund is $5,000, with Main Street Grosse Pointe reimbursing the city for half of that, or $2,500, and the city absorbing the remaining half.

The Grosse Pointe City Council unanimously approved the waiver of parking fees for off-street weekend holiday parking at a meeting Oct. 21.

“We love this,” Mayor Sheila Tomkowiak said.

Willcock said the parking fee waiver makes a big difference to the shops and restaurants in The Village. Those businesses, in turn, support the community with everything from jobs to donations of goods and services to local nonprofits.

“The small business impact goes far beyond local businesses,” Willcock said. “If we can even encourage more people to shop local … it has a tremendous impact on the local economy.”

Free weekend parking doesn’t apply to The Village parking structure — although parking in the structure is free on Sundays, and shoppers can get three hours of free structure parking with validation from Trader Joe’s or one hour of free parking with validation from Pet Supplies Plus Mondays through Saturdays. Free parking also doesn’t apply to on-street parking spots.