City Council Reclaims Parking Facilities to Lower Resident Fees and Improve Infrastructure

The capital’s City Council is taking back control of its parking infrastructure, marking a major shift in how the city manages urban mobility. Starting July 1, the Plaza de España parking garage will move from private operation by Interparking to direct municipal management.

This is the first of seven parking facilities set to return to public ownership as long-term private contracts from the 1990s expire. The city’s Housing department will oversee the transition, aiming to fix long-standing maintenance issues. Planned improvements include installing an elevator to improve accessibility, along with painting and general repairs that the previous operator failed to complete.

Belén Mesa, the Councilor for Municipal Housing, confirmed that the city’s main goal is to lower parking fees for residents. The city is currently studying how much these costs can be reduced. Moving forward, the parking lots will be staffed by municipal employees, a model that will be applied to the other six facilities as their contracts end.

This change follows complaints from the Urban Centro El Perenquén neighborhood association, which raised concerns about high monthly parking costs and a lack of transparency. Carlos Tarife, the Councilor for Public Services, explained that while the city has always regulated hourly rates, private companies previously had full control over the price of monthly passes.

The transition will be a gradual process. The next facility to return to city control is the Ramón y Cajal parking lot, though that contract will not expire for nearly a decade. By taking direct control, the City Council aims to prioritize affordable rates and necessary infrastructure upgrades as the new standard for public parking.