If you’ve parked downtown or in Broad Ripple lately, you may have noticed the meters cost a little more.
That’s because ParkIndy, the entity that manages the city’s parking meters, raised rates to $2 an hour, up from $1.75, beginning Feb. 1. It’s the second time the company has raised rates in the past five years.
ParkIndy is able to raise rates because of its agreement with the city of Indianapolis, according to contractual language reviewed by Mirror Indy.
But what is ParkIndy, and what is its relationship with the city of Indianapolis?
How ParkIndy was created
In 2010, former Mayor Greg Ballard’s administration signed a 50-year profit sharing agreement with ParkIndy, LLC, which was then a consortium of New Jersey-based tech firm Conduent Inc. and two Indianapolis-based parking companies: Denison Parking and Evens Time.
Conduent, which later sold its parking management businesses to Modaxo Traffic Management USA Inc, also paid the city an upfront fee of $20 million to lease 3,700 metered parking spaces in downtown, Mass Ave and Broad Ripple.
ParkIndy began managing the city’s parking meters in 2011. Thousands of old parking meters that only took change were replaced with solar-powered meters that accept cash and credit cards, and the ParkMobile app allows you to pay for parking with your smartphone.
Under the agreement, the city gets 30% of the first $7 million in total revenue each year. For anything above $7 million, the city’s share increases to 60%.
The contract allows the company to raise rates a quarter at a time based on inflation with 10 days notice to the city and 30 days to the public.
Ballard, the Republican mayor of Indianapolis from 2008 through 2015, boasted that the deal not only provided an upfront payment but also a long-term revenue stream for the city.
How is it going?
The new system brought in $1 million in its first year — far more than the $340,000 in net revenue the prior year when the city still managed the meters.
In 2024, the system collected just over $8.9 million, the highest annual total on record. The city’s share was around $3.3 million.
Since 2012, about $90 million in meter fees have been paid, resulting in $31.2 million in revenue for the city, according to data provided by the Indianapolis Department of Public Works.
What were the drawbacks?
Ballard’s plan did not go uncriticized.
The cost to park doubled in some neighborhoods, and some people reported broken meters and improper charges to their credit card. An initial two-hour limit on parking was later increased to four hours after complaints from residents and businesses.
ParkIndy also overpromised how much revenue the new system would generate. The private vendor said the deal would bring in $620 million over 50 years, but city officials later estimated that the agreement would only bring in about $363 million, according to a 2016 article in IndyStar.
How do I find out more about parking rates and hours?
Mirror Indy service reporter Sophie Young created a guide to help you find the best parking spots in downtown Indy.
The ParkIndy website includes information about hours, rates and available meters.
On-street meters charge from 7 a.m through 11 p.m., Monday through Saturday. Parking is free on Sundays and the following holidays: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
A clarification was made on Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025: This article has been updated to reflect the current ownership group comprising Parkindy, LLC.
Peter Blanchard covers local government. Reach him at 317-605-4836 or peter.blanchard@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on X @peterlblanchard.
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