Update: April 16, 2026
City of Roswell to Offer Parking at No Charge at New Downtown Deck During Green Street Roadway Construction
When the new downtown deck opens, parking will be offered at no charge to maintain access and support downtown businesses and employees during an upcoming construction closure.
With increased construction activity coming to Green Street in downtown Roswell, the City is taking steps to help ease impacts on residents, businesses, and visitors. To support downtown access during this time, the City will provide parking at no charge in its new parking deck when it opens in several weeks. This decision comes as part of an adjustment to the recently announced Parking Pilot Program, following a pre-construction field assessment that determined Green Street must fully close during an upcoming roadway improvement project.
Providing parking at no charge during construction requires an adjustment to the City’s recently approved Parking Pilot Program. In March 2026, the City Council approved the Parking Pilot Program, which establishes a framework for managing downtown parking demand, including the new parking deck under construction at the north end of Green Street, on-street paid parking in the downtown, and the use of a nearby gravel lot at 1056 Green Street as a designated parking option for downtown employees. The pilot is designed to collect data on usage and demand to guide future parking decisions.
What Has Changed?
Shortly after the program was approved, the City and its contractor conducted a formal assessment for the related Green Street Activation Plan, a transportation project that will convert Green Street to a one-way, southbound road and add a brick-paved multi-use trail, supporting connectivity and safety near the new parking deck.
That assessment determined that fully closing Green Street to through-traffic is necessary to complete the full scope of work and will reduce the construction timeline:
- The full closure allows the City to complete a more comprehensive set of improvements to the Green Street corridor, including the installation of underground utilities, a brick-paved multi-use trail, improved lighting and landscaping, and an eventual new trail connection from Plum Tree Street to Canton Street.
- Instead of the roadway project taking approximately 12 months to complete, it can be completed in about six months. With construction expected to begin in early May 2026, the improved Green Street should be open in fall 2026.
No-Charge Parking at New Deck During Construction
The full closure also includes the gravel lot at 1056 Green Street, which will be needed for construction staging. As this lot was identified as a key downtown employee parking option under the pilot program, its temporary loss reinforces the City’s decision to offer parking at no charge in the new deck during construction.
“We understand how important convenient parking is for our downtown businesses, employees, and visitors,” said Mayor Mary Robichaux. “Based on our field assessment, we’re making this adjustment to maintain access and support our downtown while construction is underway.”
The Parking Pilot Program will otherwise move forward as planned. The City will continue to implement on-street paid parking this spring (specific dates forthcoming), collect data on usage and demand, and evaluate those data to guide future decisions.
Original Post: March 9, 2026
City Council Approves Parking Pilot Program
As part of Roswell’s ongoing effort to manage parking demand and support downtown vitality, City Council voted 4–2 on Monday, March 9, to approve a resolution that expands the list of locations designated for paid or restricted parking, as well as approving a pilot program for the Green Street Parking Deck and City-managed, on-street parking locations through the end of 2026. Decisions regarding parking at City Hall and the forthcoming Hillrose development across from City Hall were deferred pending additional staff data.
The action builds upon authority granted under Article 22.3 of the Roswell Code of Ordinances, originally adopted in 2019, which allows the City to establish and regulate designated paid, on-street parking areas and enforce parking time limits through civil fines. In 2025, the ordinance was amended to allow paid and regulated parking in City-controlled, off-street areas.
The City’s parking system currently manages more than 1,000 parking spaces across multiple downtown locations. The Green Street Parking Deck, currently under construction and expected to open in May 2026, will add 395 spaces, while the planned HillRose multi-use development being built adjacent to City Hall will expand parking by another 350 spaces in a City-owned deck, plus surface and shared City Hall parking.
Parking Is a Regional Issue:
How Other Cities Are Responding
Cities across North Fulton and the metro Atlanta region are working through many of the same parking challenges as Roswell and are testing different approaches to find what works best for their communities. View the information from the City of Roswell’s parking presentation for additional comparisons with nearby communities.
Nearby communities like Alpharetta, Woodstock, and Sandy Springs are evaluating how to manage parking demand in their downtown and activity centers. In some cases, cities are testing targeted approaches in specific areas. For example, Woodstock introduced paid parking in select downtown zones in 2025. Other cities continue to offer parking in key public facilities while exploring long-term strategies to balance access, demand, and sustainability.
Pilot Program: Approved Locations and Implementation
City Council approved the following locations as part of the downtown parking pilot program, which will run through December 31, 2026. The City anticipates that the pilot will provide real data across both no-charge and paid models, helping leaders make quality decisions that will benefit residents and businesses.
The resolution includes previously identified 2025 locations:
- Canton Street between Magnolia Street and Norcross Street
- Elizabeth Way between Canton Street and Alpharetta Highway
- East Alley between Canton Street and Norcross Street
- East Alley Parking Lot
- Old Mill Park Parking Lot (not shown on map)
Additional locations approved on March 9 include:
- Green Street Parking Deck and Surface Lot, a new 395-space facility currently under construction and expected to open in May 2026.
- 1056 Green Street, a gravel lot across from the forthcoming parking deck. During the March 9 meeting, City Council directed staff to transition the 66-space gravel lot to a dedicated employee/business parking lot to support downtown businesses.
Parking fees, which have not yet been determined, will be established by the City Administrator using a dynamic pricing model. This data-driven strategy adjusts rates in real time based on demand, occupancy, time of day, and other utilization factors.
Green Street Parking Deck (Expected to Open Summer 2026)
- Parking will be at no charge Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., giving the City baseline data on utilization.
- Parking fees will apply on weekday evenings and all day on weekends, providing comparative utilization data.
- All parkers — residents and non-residents alike — will pay the same rates during paid hours.
- An earlier concept that would have allowed Roswell residents to park at no charge was not carried forward, as distinguishing residents from non-residents at scale across a city of nearly 100,000 people was deemed operationally unfeasible.
On-Street Parking in Downtown
- Since 2019, parking on Canton Street, Elizabeth Way, and East Alley has been paid hourly, with rates varying based on the time of day and length of stay. In some cases, the first hour has been at no charge, with hourly charges applied after that depending on the day and time.
- Under the pilot program beginning in spring 2026, on-street parking in these areas will shift to paid parking for each hour.
Deferred Items: Hillrose and City Hall Parking Under Consideration
During their meeting on March 9, City Council requested that staff bring back additional information and evaluation on several parking locations before final policy decisions are made. These areas — the Hillrose Parking Deck, Hillrose surface parking lots, on-street parking on Hill Street between Atlanta Street and Forrest Street, City Hall parking lots, and Cultural Arts Center parking lots — are under consideration for future discussion with the Council.
The Hillrose mixed-use development, planned adjacent to City Hall on Hill Street, will include approximately 80,000 square feet of commercial space, a mix of residential options including up to 143 multi-family apartments and 14 townhomes, public gathering areas, and approximately 485 parking spaces, including a City-owned parking structure designed to serve the development, City Hall, and the surrounding downtown area.
While technology and infrastructure planning for Hillrose proceeds in the near term, policy decisions for these locations are expected to return to the Council within approximately two months, at which point additional community input will be incorporated into the discussion.
Next Steps
City staff will begin coordinating the phased implementation of the approved parking areas, including signage, technology deployment, and public information updates.
Additional details about the pilot program and implementation timing will be shared with the community as the program moves forward.
Staff will also conduct public outreach on the Hillrose and City Hall parking policies, with those decisions expected to return to the Council within approximately two months.
Links and Resources
City Council Meeting Item (Approved), March 9, 2026
Presentation: Parking Policy Recommendations, March 9, 2026
Budget Resources
