Queen Anne Avenue Could Get Parking Meters in 2027. Here's Why the Avenue Is Split.

"People here usually come because they want to browse or they want to pick something up," Krijn De Jonge, who has co-owned Queen Anne Book Company with his wife since 2013, told KOMO News in early October. "So, it may be worse for coffee shops where you just hop in and buy a cup of coffee."

He was talking about a draft plan from the Seattle Department of Transportation that would put parking meters on the top of the hill for the first time. It would cover Queen Anne Avenue North from West Galer Street to McGraw Street, along with short stretches of Boston and Crockett. SDOT's own counts show something else that matters here. Most people who come to the Avenue don't park on it. Even so, the curb is full for most of the day. Both sides are working from that fact. The open question is which tool would get those spaces turning over.

What the draft would change on the Avenue

SDOT posted its draft recommendations on September 30, 2026, and installation is planned for 2027. Nothing has been adopted yet. The rates and block list below are proposals, and they will be revised this winter based on feedback.

The proposed starting rates are $1 an hour from 8 to 11 a.m. and $4 an hour from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Paid blocks would stay free overnight, on Sundays and on City holidays. On the free blocks, time limits would now run until 8 p.m. The draft also adds load zones, improves visibility at intersections, and adds bike and scooter parking.

The Saturday rule is the one most locals will notice first. Free parking on Sunday would carry on as it is now, while a Saturday afternoon errand on the Avenue would start costing money.

The curb is full, and most visitors aren't using it

SDOT last reviewed parking on Upper Queen Anne in 2008. Its new count was taken on Thursday, April 23, 2026. About 80% of blocks were mostly or very full between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m., and most of the streets studied were more than 86% full between 5 and 8 p.m. Compared with 2022, demand has grown, and the biggest increase came in the morning and early afternoon. The Urbanist reported that 11 of the 22 blocks counted in Upper Queen Anne were above 85% full. Several blocks across the two districts SDOT studied went over 100%, which means cars were parked in spots that aren't actually spaces.

That same month, SDOT staff stopped 341 people on the Avenue and asked how they usually got there:

• 49% walk
• 38% drive and park
• 10% take transit
• 2% bike

So the curb fills up with cars from a little over a third of the people on the sidewalk. A wider online survey that summer leaned the other way. In that one, 53% of residents and visitors said they usually drive and 47% said they usually don't, with walking the top non-driving answer at 36%. The two surveys drew from different groups. The intercept survey counted people who were actually on the Avenue, and the online survey reached people who chose to fill it out. Either way, a large share of the Avenue's foot traffic doesn't touch the curb at all.

That gap explains what the meters are meant to do. SDOT sets rates with a goal of keeping one or two open spaces per block, and it raises or lowers prices depending on how full the blocks run. The city has run this performance-based pricing since 2010. According to The Urbanist, rates are adjusted twice a year to hit a target of 70% to 85% occupancy. The same outlet reports that fewer than 2% of Seattle streets have meters today. That's why adding them to a neighborhood main street draws far more attention than a routine rate change downtown.

What the businesses on the Avenue are asking for

The businesses agree the curb is crowded. In SDOT's September outreach summary, 76% of the 41 businesses surveyed said customers have trouble finding parking, 61% said customers often complain about it, and 51% said loading is difficult. The main project page reports slightly different business figures, 61% and 63%, so the exact share depends on which SDOT document you read. Businesses also raised delivery trucks and app-based drivers blocking traffic.

Where they split from SDOT is on the fix. As The Urbanist reported, a September 23 letter asked the city to keep street parking on Queen Anne Avenue free. Signers included the owners of Queen Anne Book Company, Betty Restaurant, Aluel Cellars, Bounty Kitchen and Stuhlberg's, plus the director of the Queen Anne Farmers Market. The letter set out a different order of tools:

"We support improving parking availability and turnover, but paid parking is not the only tool available. Better enforcement of existing time limits, appropriately located loading zones, short-term pickup spaces, accessible parking, and adjustments to existing parking restrictions should be fully utilized before paid parking is considered."

The letter also said high parking demand "should not be interpreted as support from the business community for paid parking." Speaking to KOMO, De Jonge said he backs more load zones. He also said that by the time he spoke with SDOT, the decision to move ahead with paid parking already seemed made, and he wished the city had asked for input earlier.

The draft partly meets that request. SDOT proposes 5-, 15- and 30-minute load zones, with the 5-minute zones free and suggested for coffee shops and businesses that do a lot of takeout. That covers the quick stop De Jonge was worried about. Where those zones go will depend on what businesses tell SDOT. The Queen Anne Chamber of Commerce published a summary of the proposal on October 4 that walks through SDOT's goals and next steps without taking a position.

The pieces the draft leaves open

Residents who rely on a Restricted Parking Zone permit will want to know how it would work on the new paid blocks. The Upper Queen Anne draft doesn't say. Under SDOT's general RPZ permit rules, a permit lets an eligible resident park past posted time limits but doesn't guarantee a nearby space. The citywide RPZ FAQ says permits usually can't stand in for payment in paid areas, with a few listed zone exceptions. If this affects your block, the comment form is the place to ask SDOT directly.

Exact load zone locations haven't been decided yet, and the project page doesn't say where the new bike and scooter parking would go. According to the FAQ, meter revenue would go to the City's general fund, which helps pay for transportation services and improvements. The Avenue also isn't the only district in this round. SDOT released a parallel proposal for West Seattle's Alaska Junction at the same time, and The Urbanist calls the pair the city's largest expansion of paid street parking in at least a decade.

How to weigh in before winter

SDOT's in-person tables at the Queen Anne Farmers Market on October 1 and 8 are over. Written comments are still open, and the project page doesn't list a closing date.

1. Read the draft recommendations and block map on SDOT's project page, along with the FAQ.
2. Send comments through the online form on that page, email [email protected], or call (206) 684-7229.
3. Plan around the timeline. SDOT will revise the recommendations this winter and install changes in 2027.

Parking on the Avenue stays the same through the holidays. The Queen Anne Fall Wine Walk runs Saturday, November 7, from 4 to 7 p.m. along this same Galer-to-McGraw stretch, with check-in at Bethany Presbyterian Church, 1818 Queen Anne Ave N.

If you live near the Avenue and have questions about how a curb change like this could affect your block, from parking out front to the feel of the street, I'm happy to talk it through with you. Reach out to Savanna Taylor. Let's Connect.