Detroit parking costs at NFL draft reach $100: How to plan ahead, pay less

Don't want to pay $100 to park in downtown Detroit for the NFL draft? You don't have to. Make a plan. Get there early. Or if you can, do a bit of walking.

Downtown garages and lots increased their prices as hundreds of thousands of visitors descended on Detroit's downtown for the massive sporting event taking place in Michigan's largest city through Saturday. Parking costs reached as high as $100, sparking outrage.

"That's absolutely crazy," said Abigail Blumberg Thursday as she was on her way to work at Parc restaurant at Campus Martius, complaining about the surge in parking costs. She said she usually parks downtown and it typically costs her $12. Fortunately for her, her workplace covered the cost of the parking Thursday.

For other downtown workers and visitors on their own to cover the cost of parking, here are some tips to secure a reasonably priced spot.

Make a plan for NFL draft Detroit parking

Street closures complicate the parking situation downtown, so before hitting the road, make a plan. Parking violators will face some serious headaches.

Parking tickets are $45 (Detroit residents might be able to qualify for a discounted fine if they pre-register). And expect to be towed if you park where you shouldn't. Sam Krassenstein, Detroit's chief of infrastructure told the Free Press that drivers should keep an eye on signage indicating a "tow-away zone."

To find available off-street parking, try the Park Detroit or Park Whiz smartphone apps, where you can find and book parking ahead of time. On Friday morning, there were still spots for less than $50.

Park and ride options for NFL draft

Numerous park-and-ride options are available for QLINE and SMART buses.

QLINE

Detroit's streetcar, which is currently free to ride, has several park-and-ride lots available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Cost is $5 to park.

• WSU Lot 12 — Harper and Woodward, near the Amsterdam station

• New Center Garage — 116 Lothrop, near the Grand Boulevard station

• Cass Garage — 6540 Cass Ave., near the Baltimore station

• John R and Piquette — 6230 John R., near the Amsterdam station

The Qline southbound toward downtown stops at Little Caesars Arena during the draft, requiring about a mile walk the rest of the way to the draft action.

SMART

Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation buses are scheduled to leave park-and-ride lots once per hour between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. each day of the draft, according to a release. Buses are to return from downtown (Bricktown People Mover Station for east-side routes and Fort/Cass station for west-side routes) once per hour 1-11:30 p.m. Friday and 1-7:30 p.m. Saturday. One-way fares are $2 per adult, $1 per child (5-18) and 50 cents for those older than 65 or who have a disability.

Here are the SMART park-and-ride lot locations:

• Great Lakes Crossing, 4000 Baldwin, Auburn Hills

• Lakeside Mall, 14000 Lakeside Circle, Sterling Heights

• Mount Clemens Farmers Market, 141 North River Road

• Sterling Heights Meijer, 36000 Van Dyke Ave.

• Troy Civic Center Park and Ride lot, 520 W. Big Beaver Road

• Oakland Community College Orchard Ridge Campus, 27055 Orchard Lake Road, Farmington Hills

• Southfield Civic Center bus terminal, 24350 Civic Center Drive

• Westland Police Department, 36701 Ford Road

• Fairlane Town Center, 18900 Michigan Ave., Dearborn

• Lincoln Park Community Center, 3525 Dix Highway

• Southgate Meijer, 16300 Fort St.

NFL draft shuttles

Krassenstein suggested fan shuttles from three locations as a good bet that would be convenient and priced reasonably, with shuttles scheduled to run regularly between the parking areas and the draft entrance location drop-offs, 11 a.m.-12:30 a.m. Friday and 8 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturday.

Here are those shuttle parking locations and costs:

• WSU Structure 1, 450 W. Palmer Ave. — $10 per car (first come, first serve)

• Bagley Mobility Hub, 1501 Wabash St. — $15 (prepay recommended). Link to prepay here (add $1.50 service fee).

• River East Garage, 214 Rivard St. — $15 per car (prepay recommended). Link to prepay here (add 99-cent service fee).

Contact Clara Hendrickson at chendrickson@freepress.com or 313-296-5743. Follow her on X, previously called Twitter, @clarajanehen. Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress.com. Become a subscriber. Submit a letter to the editor.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: NFL draft parking in Detroit: Options to help you save money