Downtown Parking Deck Is Now Open

The City of Douglasville held the official ribbon cutting ceremony today at 11 a.m. to open the downtown parking deck. The deck can accommodate up to 300 cars.

Community and Downtown Services Director Marcia Hampton said the deck is now open.

"It's a great day to get our parking back," Hampton said. "The lot has been closed since October of last year and this is a great day for downtown businesses. They not only get back the 120 spaces they lost but also 180 more spaces in addition. The fact that these are covered spaces is also a great advantage."

The parking deck is conveniently located next to the new conference center in the heart of downtown and will offer free parking. 

"I think it's a big day for existing downtown businesses and I'd like to think that the new conference center and parking deck will attract new businesses that will help further revive the downtown," Neil Jenkins said, owner of the Irish Bred Pub.

"I look forward to welcoming back those who were hesitant to come downtown for lunch because of the parking issue," he said. "Day or night there will never be a parking issue downtown again."

In August the City's Elected Officials made the decision to operate both the new conference center and the existing Downtown Conference Center as one campus, according to a press release by the City. The entire campus will be further known and operated as the Douglasville Conference Center. Users of the facilities will have the option of approximately 50,000 square feet of meeting space. The new facility is scheduled to be completed in January.

In the attached photo gallery, there are photos of the stages of development that have occurred over the past nine months. The new facility has been designed so that it appears to have always been a part of the historic downtown fabric. There are even some historic downtown architectural features mimicked in the new facility.