Stanley Marketplace in NW Aurora has been looking for parking solutions.

A free parking program for the holidays at Stanley Marketplace remains in place even though the holidays are over.

Jonathan Power, director of retail at Stanley Marketplace, says management is actively looking at “several alternatives and options to address our parking challenges.” He adds that until they land on a long term-solution for parking that “meets the needs of guests,” free parking will be offered in the center’s lots.

Stanley Marketplace put up signs offering free parking during the month of December.

A new paid parking program was launched at the NW Aurora shopping and dining area in April 2024. Patrons were offered three hours of free parking followed by a per-hour charge of $3 with a maximum daily rate of $25. The system was designed to encourage more people to walk or ride to the marketplace and keep the available parking spots open to shoppers rather than for use by the nearby apartment residents and employees.

On social media, some customers complained about the new program while others found solutions by parking on nearby surface streets.

In late fall, the program hit a snag when some Stanley patrons erroneously received parking violations from the vendor of the parking setup.

Stanley management worked quickly to correct the situation. “We worked closely with the previous parking vendor to ensure all outstanding issues were resolved,” Power says.

Power says marketplace managers appreciated the feedback and support from the community on parking and are “looking forward to sharing more once we’ve finalized the plans for parking at Stanley Marketplace.”