Student here moving to providence soon. Sounds like parking is hard to come by in Providence, especially downtown. How financially reasonable/safe is it to pay for parking in a garage but live in a condo/building that’s about a 5 minute walk from the garage?

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listen_youse t1_jahb4gn wrote on March 1, 2023 at 1:04 PM

Parking is plentiful and easy to come by downtown - if you can get over paying for it. If that is your problem, here is excellent news: Downtown and the local colleges are cleverly arranged so that day to day life and attending classes are easily accomplished without using a car at all!

[deleted] t1_jagmms8 wrote on March 1, 2023 at 7:55 AM

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lestermagnum t1_jah4ji9 wrote on March 1, 2023 at 11:58 AM

Overnight parking isn’t allowed on most streets downtown, even with a permit.

https://www.providenceri.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/PoliceDistrict_1_Mapbook_ANSI_B_Portrait_1.pdf

[deleted] t1_jah9vju wrote on March 1, 2023 at 12:52 PM

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_jahtyvo wrote on March 1, 2023 at 3:27 PM

Safe? Sure. Financially reasonably is relative. Rents can be expensive and downtown is not going to be the place with some diamond in the rough with cheaper rent. Some building have limited parking available. I'd probably just google "providence monthly parking" to get an idea of what rates are like.

Mountain_Bill5743 t1_jakdct9 wrote on March 2, 2023 at 1:24 AM

Just fyi buildings with 6 or more units cannot apply for a street permit. So even if you were able to find a street that allowed overnight permit, you won't be able to apply for a permit.

Personally, I find downtown is a complete snoozefest, ghost town to reside since it's a lot of banks, hotels, and shops that close up at 5pm and few residents. It's not as bad as it used to be to live in, but you might find yourself isolated as it will be equally inconvenient for friends to visit from other neighborhoods unless they want to search for a meter. But, for what it is worth, I've never actually lived there so maybe someone can vouch for it being worth the premium.

RandomChurn t1_jaqrs32 wrote on March 3, 2023 at 11:25 AM

Back around 2013/2014 I had a graphic artist friend who lived in one of the micro lofts in the Arcade. She absolutely loved living downcity-- but she didn't have a car.

FunLife64 t1_jahbq69 wrote on March 1, 2023 at 1:09 PM

Not sure I’d say parking is hard to come by downtown. People in RI are scared of traffic, parking, etc so if it involves effort it’s “difficult” haha

One thing that IS true is how absurd it is that apartments get built downtown with no parking. I looked at a new apt building in the Jewelry District and they looked at me like I was crazy when I asked about parking (“we are still figuring out a plan”). Even the Aloft Hotel got built with no parking.

Anyways, there’s plenty of monthly garages. There are SOME apartments where it’s a part of the building. Obviously it’s not included. You should be able to find something closer than 5 min but if it’s cheapest you’re looking for it’s fine. PVD is generally safe.