City of Bloomington Launches Comprehensive Parking Study to Evaluate Parking Policies, Rates, Operations and Technology

The City of Bloomington has partnered with Walker Consultants to conduct a citywide parking review focused on how effectively Bloomington’s parking systems serve its workers, visitors and neighborhoods.

The study aims to better understand how the City’s systems are working, how they are not and how they can evolve to meet everyday needs. It will closely examine the logistics and rates of on-street parking, residential zones, garages, and surface lots managed by the City. The City of Bloomington routinely conducts parking studies as part of an ongoing evaluation and management of its parking systems.

Walker will obtain benchmarks from comparably sized cities to make informed recommendations to the Parking Services Division intended to strengthen customer service, inclusion and accessibility, and equity and fairness.

Community members are invited to participate in an online survey that will help inform the review’s final recommendations, which are expected to be shared later this year. The survey will accept input through May 27.

“We want a city where the logistics of parking don’t add frustration to people’s lives,” said Michelle Wahl, City of Bloomington parking services director. “This study is about building systems that reflect how Bloomington is growing, making it easier for people to live, work and connect across our community.”

In addition to evaluating current operations, the study will examine the broader economic and social impacts of Bloomington’s overall parking strategy, including how parking policies affect neighborhood livability, business accessibility and transportation equity.

While frequently overlooked, parking contributes meaningfully to the City’s financial stability and supports a wide range of public functions.

In 2024, parking citations generated more than $1.61 million in revenue for the City of Bloomington, compared to $1.73 million in 2023. These funds are directed into the City’s General Fund, where they help support critical public services, delivery and general municipal government operations. Parking enforcement not only ensures parking turnover and accessibility but also contributes to the City’s ability to maintain operations without relying solely on additional tax revenue.

For more information, contact Michelle Wahl at michelle.wahl@bloomington.in.gov or 812-349-3436.

About Walker Consultants

The Walker Consultant team includes parking professionals with strong municipal parking operations backgrounds who have served more than 1,000 municipalities and bring solutions from hundreds of parking studies for similarly-sized cities.