Kristin Eis wrote recently about the parking issues in downtown Bothell.

We feel your pain. The City of Bothell is well aware that parking is an issue downtown, and we’re working on a plan to address it. There’s not an easy solution, and it will take some time.

For now, the public can park for free in the City Hall garage from 6:30 a.m. to midnight. There are 100 spaces on floors P2 and P3 that are open for those visiting downtown, including the businesses across Bothell Way at Six Oaks and McMenamins. After 5 p.m. and all day on weekends, stalls marked “City Hall Staff” are also open to the public. In my time here, I’ve never seen the garage full. We welcome you to our garage, with entrances on both NE 183rd and 185th streets. For more information see www.bothellwa.gov/parkinggarage

Once the two hotels are built on the Civic Center block, likely by the fall of 2018, the hotels will lease some of the stalls in the garage.

Watch the April edition of the Bothell Reporter for a column with more details on the City’s efforts on a long-range parking plan. And thanks for your patience.

Jennifer Phillips, Bothell City Manager