Pensacola residents will soon pay less to park downtown. Beginning Oct. 1, the city will roll out a new parking permit system that offers a 50% discount for residents and a $10 monthly pass for seniors.
Mayor D.C. Reeves announced the changes at his weekly press conference Tuesday, framing the program as a way to make parking more affordable for locals while still keeping downtown curb space turning over.
“They would have a proof of residency and when they open the ParkMobile app they will only be paying 50 cents an hour and no fee,” Reeves said. “... This will be the lowest that paid parking has ever been once that’s instituted.”
Under the plan, residents 65 and older will be able to buy a $10 monthly permit that allows them to park in any city-owned space.
“City residents over 65 … will be able to pay ten dollars a month and … park anywhere in city-owned spaces,” Reeves said.
Parking downtown has been a persistent source of tension, with residents questioning the cost and availability of spaces. The new discounts are designed to lower costs for locals, while maintaining the turnover that merchants rely on and generating revenue for long-term infrastructure needs. Reeves emphasized that paid parking is not only about revenue but also about managing supply.
“Any permit that would be completely free … would then defeat the entire purpose of pay parking as a whole,” he said. “The idea of charging is to create churn.”
The program also responds directly to findings from the city’s 2024 Resident Satisfaction Survey, which found that more than four in five residents would use discounted parking permits if offered. Parking was flagged as a top concern in open-ended comments, making this one of the clearest priorities identified by residents.
City officials say the senior permit is aimed not only at affordability but also at accessibility. Reeves acknowledged that the technology used for parking can pose challenges for some older residents. The $10 pass offers a simpler alternative. At the same time, traditional kiosks will continue to accept coins and bills for those without smartphones or bank cards.
“If the senior citizen works downtown, that’s what it would cost to pay it for one day,” Reeves said of the $10 pass. “We just try to find that happy medium somewhere between making sure that the people who are wanting these are … folks that are using it, but making it plenty affordable for folks on fixed incomes.”
The timeline depends on migrating existing permits — including those purchased by employers for garage parking — into the new system to avoid confusion and unintended tickets. Reeves said the city is “circling around October 1st” for launching both the resident discount and the senior permits. The senior permit will launch as a pilot program, limited to one car per household, with officials evaluating participation before considering adjustments.
“We are going to limit it as a pilot … to one car per household, one per address,” Reeves said.
The changes are part of a broader parking strategy aimed at ensuring locals benefit from lower costs while visitors bear more of the expense. Reeves has argued that permit revenue is critical for funding new garages and maintaining city infrastructure. He also stressed the need to prevent a return to the days when cars monopolized prime spaces all day.
“When you’re trying new things … it can always be a learning experience,” he said.
