Airport car parking fee likely to double
Parking fees at Timaru’s Richard Pearse Airport could be set to double.
The proposal to double the fees from $5 to $10 for those parked more than three hours comes 18 months after they were introduced in mid2018 with the then-mayor Damon Odey saying at the time that the council had set them at a level which ‘‘enabled us to help fund the significant upgrade to the facilities, while still being affordable’’.
A draft annual plan/budget report now says ‘‘the proposed ($10) fee represents an increase to cover the cost of providing the activity.’’
Mayor Nigel Bowen told The Timaru Herald yesterday that the increase would help fund future projects at the airport, as well as ensuring the general ratepayer did not carry such a cost burden.
‘‘We’re moving into the user-pays sphere.
‘‘It’s still the cheapest airport carpark in the country as far as I know.’’
In 2018, the council completed $1.3 million upgrades to the terminal, which included a larger baggage collection area, upgraded check-in desks, new seating, lighting and heating, more sockets and charging stations and free wi-fi.
When the council was asked yesterday to supply figures about how much money it had acquired from the airport parking since mid-2018, or what the next major projects were planned for the airport, a spokesman declined to give that information.
However, it has been previously reported that the carparking generated just over $40,000 in revenue for the council in its opening six months (August 2018 to January 2019).
The car park has 96 spaces and is automated so users pay when they exit.
The council will debate whether to raise the parking fares and other changes to user charges at its draft budget and annual plan meetings on March 23 and 24.
‘‘We’re moving into the user-pays sphere. It’s still the cheapest airport carpark in the country as far as I know.’’
Mayor Nigel Bowen