America’s Oldest City has had an ongoing problem plaguing it for decades. While the founders and settlers laid out the city and battled the actual plague, they couldn’t have foreseen what a problem they were creating for the future: a parking shortage.

Anyone who lives in St. Augustine has had their fair share of parking woes. Residents have swapped war stories about how the influx of tourists makes navigating the Ancient City a white-knuckling and frustrating experience.

The city has struggled to alleviate the problem. The Cordova garage, for instance, improved the situation for a while. But in the 20 years since its construction, the demand for parking has outgrown those 1,200 spots.

This year, during the Nights of Lights, the city attempted to alleviate gridlock congestion by once again offering shuttles running from outside the historical district and strict no-parking zone enforcement along narrow residential streets.

Did it work? In some ways. Did it also cause even more chaos with drivers hunting for somewhere to park? Absolutely.

The event draws tens of thousands of people every year. That’s a lot of cars and bodies to pack into a few colonial-sized blocks. Though there is no final headcount on how many attended the 2025 festivities, city managers estimate that it was the largest crowd yet. Even with the implementation of barricades to keep pedestrians from spreading into the streets, officers to direct traffic, and increased fines, it still wasn’t enough to control the chaos.

Business owners and their employees seem to pay the price, figuratively and literally, during this peak time. Some report paying $30 or more every day just to make it to work on time.

Once again, the city has come up with a solution that offers everyone — business owners, residents, and tourists alike — a bit of relief.

In January, they announced a deal with Barry Broudy, the owner of Broudy Liquors (a city staple since the 1950s) to develop the property located at 194 West King Street, at the corner of Ponce de Leon Boulevard. The city unveiled plans to construct a garage that will host a minimum of 650 spaces — just over half of the Cordova garage’s capacity.

Along with the garage, plans for the site include a mixed-use commercial development with room for shops and a new Broudy’s Liquor Store.

While locals appreciate that the city is taking action to rectify a long-standing problem, some don’t love it. Some complain it’s too close to the historic district and won’t do enough to ease gridlock. On the other hand, it might be too far for some employees to be able to utilize it.

The project is set to begin construction this summer. While we won’t know its effectiveness for a couple of years, we can hope that it eases some of the pressure that’s been hovering over the city for years.

If only Pedro Menendez and the settlers who built the town had seen this coming, maybe they would have done things differently.

Over 370,000 people attended the event, with more than 75% of those are from outside of the county. $120 million in economic impact, $93.7 million in direct spending from out-of-towners.