Roanoke City Council seeks additional information on possible downtown valet service

In recent months, the city of Roanoke has begun to consider the possibility of valet service to help mitigate parking problems in the downtown area.

Developer Integrity Group put forth a valet proposal as part of a mixed-use development that will be constructed adjacent to City Hall. The valet service would act as an alternative parking option in order for Integrity to meet its parking requirements for the development, according to City Manager Scott Campbell.

“We’ve talked about a potential valet system and if there was interest in pursuing that,” Campbell said. “The issue is [the developer] has a deficit on the number of parking spaces, and it’s a new enough concept to us we felt like we needed an extra look.”

As part of discussion at a City Council meeting Jan. 28, council agreed to table the valet service agreement until an impact analysis study can be conducted—a cost the developer has agreed to cover, Campbell said.

Integrity will be expected to cover the cost of the study and a future contract with a third-party valet service, and the city plans to provide unused parking spaces at the rec center and soccer fields on weekends, Campbell said.

“This is our way of being more diligent,” Campbell said. “The hook on this would be, if we went back about splitting cost, and [the developer] says no, the answer may be no.”

The city will refer to the impact analysis in order to see the possible negative or positive impacts the valet service could have on the downtown area, Mayor Scooter Gierisch said.

“It has to work, and there’s a lot of questions we need answered,” Gierisch said. “We want to get an independent study to get our heads wrapped around this thing. It’s such a new concept.”