It is a good thing to me, a downtowner for 13 years, that a lot of the people that post here don't come downtown. With some of the comments they make on WRAL articles, I think we are better off letting them stay away from our city core.

ParadoxInLife:"Living three blocks from downtown and traveling down there almost every other day, I really don't understand the gripes of folks about downtown parking."

Do you own a car? Does the city charge you to park in front of your house/apartment? If not, what if they did? Why should I have to pay to park in downtown when parking is free everywhere else outside of downtown?

It's the principle that I have to pay for the privilege of going downtown that keeps me away from downtown, not the fact that I might have to walk from my car to a business or event there. Why should parking in downtown Raleigh be different from the rest of the city just because it is downtown?

Raise it to an even $1Mil. I don't EVER go downtown anyway - go through it sometimes but never stop because of this silliness.

Living three blocks from downtown and travelling down there almost every other day, I really don't understand the gripes of folks about downtown parking. Have we as a society really gotten so lazy that if we can't park outside a place of business' front door we go somewhere else? I guess I'm one of the few that enjoys walking a couple blocks and getting to see what new businesses have sprung up or changed over.

Everyone was so excited about the presidential candidates talking about NOT raising income taxes. What you did not realize is ALL the other ways government at every level will get into your wallets. Parking is just one way to generate revenue. They will not cut their waste. They will find ways to get more of your money. I don’t go near downtown Raleigh unless I have to.