SAN ANTONIO — When you pull up to the Pearl, expect to pay for parking, depending on where you park. The parking lot under the Highway 281 overpass used to be free to people coming to explore this part of the city, but it's now a designated premium parking area.
"I think it has a purpose," new San Antonio resident Tyler Kirk said. "It pays the taxes for the city."
A purpose, however, does not mean his reaction is all positive.
"For downtown, for this section -- it's a little extreme," Kirk added.
Anyone parking in the premium area longer than 30 minutes will have to pay $3 to park all day Monday through Thursday; on Fridays and the weekend, that rate jumps to $8 for all-day parking.
"I can't see any reason why people would love to pay for parking," Kirk said. "Especially when there's not too much side parking, and they're working on the streets all of the time."
"It's just hard to find a good place to park," he added.
The new premium lot under the highway is in addition to the more than 65 spots that transitioned into paid parking back in November 2020. Kirk said he doesn't see these new premium parking spots as something that will stop people from coming to hang out. Rather, he thinks free parking would free up wallets.
"They'll have $4 to $8 more dollars to spend at the ice cream shop," Kirk said. "They can buy an appetizer if they want."
Just because the 281 lot has transitioned to paid parking doesn't mean there aren't still free options elsewhere on the Pearl ground. For a list of free parking options, click here.