Leavenworth secures lease for paid parking lot at Highway 2 and Chumstick intersection

LEAVENWORTH – The Leavenworth City Council approved a lease agreement with Willkommen, LLC, for an 80-stall parking lot at the intersection of Highway 2 and Chumstick Highway during its Sept. 24 meeting.

“This is a fairly underutilized parking lot, and I think it's partly because people have a difficult time paying…There is some form of payment that is posted there, but from what I've been told, I’ve tried it myself, it doesn't work. And the word has gotten out that we are pretty robust in our parking enforcement, so I think a lot of people just don't park there in fear of getting a ticket,” said City Administrator Matthew Selby.

The year lease agreement, recommended by the Parking Advisory Committee, will begin on Oct. 25. Parking rates will reflect those of Glacier Lot once it opens, which are expected to be less than the city’s pay-to-park lots that are closer to downtown, according to previous reporting in The Leavenworth Echo. The city plans to add signposts to better mark the entrance, located near Fig title company, and the exit, located on Chumstick Highway, said Selby.

The city will share 50 percent of the paid parking revenue with the property owner, Willkommen, LLC. The city will provide a kiosk and aerial sensors, according to the lease agreement. The Parking Department will take over management of the parking lot, and expenses from operating the lot will be deducted prior to the revenue share. Revenue earned from parking violations will be kept by the city.

“My first winter here of 2022, this parking lot was not maintained. During our busy Christmas light season when we had a heck of a lot of snow and everybody was parking in our neighborhoods, if this lot had been plowed, there would have been more people able to get out of the neighborhood and into this parking lot,” added Selby.

The lease agreement passed with Councilmember Sharon Waters opposing. When approached by Ward Media, Waters declined to provide a reason for her opposition.

Taylor Caldwell: 509-433-7276 or taylor@ward.media