Welcome Downtown Visitors
Welcome Downtown Visitors
The City of Knoxville and Public Building Authority (PBA) officials welcome all visitors to Downtown Knoxville. Here within the PBA Parking Services division, our focus is to make parking a convenient and positive experience for downtown visitors during their time in Downtown Knoxville and all it has to offer. Many PBA managed parking garages and parking lots are conveniently located in and around many downtown local theaters, restaurants and stores.
For additional information on downtown parking garages and lots please call (865) 215-2434 or email us at parking@ktnpba.org.
For additional information on downtown street parking or citations please call (865) 215-2314 or email us at citations@ktnpba.org.
Additional General parking information can be found by visiting http://www.knoxvilletn.gov/parking
FAQ
How and where is parking enforced by the City of Knoxville near the UT campus?
City parking enforcement in the Cumberland District includes White and Lake avenues; Melrose Place; and Mountcastle, 17th, 18th, 19th, 20th, 21st and 22nd streets. PBA has assigned four PBA officers to handle parking enforcement in the Cumberland Avenue area. PBA officers also enforce 30-minute limits for commercial vehicles only to park in designated commercial loading zones, and they also will be ticketing drivers who park vehicles illegally on sidewalks or in other non-designated areas.
How much does it cost to park at a metered on-street space? What are the hours of operation, when I’m subject to getting a parking ticket?
The rate for parking in an on-street metered space is uniformly $1.50 an hour. Vehicles typically can be parked for up to two hours at a time. Hours of operation in the Cumberland District are Monday thru Saturday 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. (The same hours are in effect downtown, except on Gay Street and around Market Square; on those streets, enforcement hours extend till 11 p.m.)
If I’m downtown, isn’t it cheaper to park in a City-owned garage?
The downtown City garage rate is $1 an hour – that’s 50 cents an hour less than metered on-street rates. You can park all day in the garage for $7/day (maximum). Parking in City-owned garages will remain free on weekends and upon entry after 6 p.m. on weekdays.
If I get a parking ticket, how much would I have to pay? Can I pay it online? What if I think the ticket is undeserved and I want to talk with someone in City Court?
The smallest fee, for a meter violation, starts at $11. But the penalties vary depending on the violation. Parking in a space reserved for a disabled driver, for example, is punishable by a $50 fine. Anyone wishing to pay a ticket for a traffic meter violation or other parking violation can do so online at http://www.knoxvilletn.gov/payticket. Or contact City Court at 865-215-7474 or visit the court in the Safety Building, 800 Howard Baker Jr. Ave.
What do I do if the Knoxville Police Department has authorized my vehicle to be towed for illegally parking in a commercial zone or a fire lane?
Vehicles that are towed are taken to the City’s Vehicle Impoundment Lot on Vice Mayor Jack Sharp Road in East Knoxville. The contact number for the lot is 865-215-6215. To retrieve a vehicle from the Impoundment Lot, you’ll need a government-issued photo ID, a licensed driver, and proof of ownership. The Impoundment Lot is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, but vehicles are only released between 8 a.m. and midnight. Impound fees may be paid with cash, a Mastercard or VISA credit card, a debit card with a VISA emblem, a company check, a cashier’s check or a money order.
I’m a parent, and I’m moving my child into student housing off Cumberland Avenue this weekend. Can I unload the vehicle and then go park somewhere?
There’s a Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center surface parking lot at 19th Street and White Avenue, the most eastern of a series of parking lots in that block. It’s available to UT parkers and the general public after 6 p.m. weeknights and on weekends. To be sure you’re parking in the right place, pay attention to the posted signs on the lots – the signs will indicate if you’re in the hospital’s lot or a non-public tow-away lot.
