Muni Lot to open for overnight parking

In what will be a citywide effort to increase parking revenues, including lots and meters, there’s a silver lining for Cleveland Browns fans: The Muni Lot will allow tailgaters to park overnight in advance of home games.

Previously allowing patrons to wait until 7 a.m. on gamedays, leading to long lines, traffic issues and unhappy fans, the city of Cleveland will now allow (or perhaps encourage) fans to take advantage of their night-before parking for a nominal feel—$25 per car, SUV or small truck, and $75 per RV, bus or trailer. This cost does not include, however, two days at the new “special event” parking rate with could be up to $30 per day. The current rate is $20 and expectations are that this will increase to $25.

Cleveland City Council on Monday authorized the city to increase its parking rates to raise more than $8.2 million to pay off debt on city garages built 20 years ago. It will include an increase meter parking fees from 75 cents to $1 per hour downtown and from 50 cents to 75 cents per hour near institutions, such as schools or hospitals.

Parking costs have been a hot-button item as of late, with some local fans outraged at increased rates for special events like the men’s NCAA tournament and the Cleveland Indians home opener. Rates are expected to increase during the NBA playoffs, but these are largely regulated by private owners as opposed to the city. The local Law Department is currently studying whether the city can cap fees charged by operators of private lots, though others continue to point out that these fees are still considerably less than other large cities.

[Related: Indulging in the Spoils of a Cleveland Browns win]