SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) -- The San José City Council initially voted against a five-year phased plan to increase parking rates across downtown, ensuring drivers will not face higher parking costs for now. However, after three votes, the following changes were agreed upon: Special event parking ra tes will go up by $5 Hourly rates in garages will go up by $1 The discounted monthly parking pass for downtown employees will raise its income eligibility threshold for 50% above minimum wage, not including tips The City Council did not decide to move forward with the Downtown Parking Board. The parking rate proposal was introduced to raise funds for the city's general fund to help address an ongoing budget crisis. Despite the rejection of the current proposal, city officials will continue discussions to identify alternative funding sources. Under the rejected proposal, downtown parking meter rates would have increased to $3 by July 2027 and $4 by July 2030. The measure also sought to extend parking meter hours from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., eliminating free evening parking. Additionally, parking garage rates would have increased incrementally by $1.25 for every 15 minutes. The decision to send the proposal back to the drawing board earned praise from a large group of small-business owners in the downtown area. Business proprietors voiced concerns about how higher rates and extended hours could affect both employees and customers. George Gonzalez, owner of The Club on Post restaurant, expressed concern over how rate increases would affect downtown workers and diners. Kaiser layoffs to impact nearly 150 workers across California Parking meters in San Jose. (KRON4 Photo) ‘Fare Required’: Why is Muni putting up this obvious sign on buses? “Downtown is very difficult to find parking already and my employees have to use the meters. And so raising it from two to $4 can impact their pay,” Gonzalez said. “And ultimately, you know how much they have to pay for parking versus going to work... So I don't I don't see the need to raise the price of. So I'm a little concerned that if it does do that, it's going to deter people from coming downtown.” The City Council plans to hold a joint meeting with the Parking Board to continue discussions on revenue options. All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by KRON4. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat information into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by KRON4 staff before being published. ...read more read less