Downtown Parking

The City of St. Catharines has paid parking, on and off street, and at two municipal parking garages. Curbside parking is available at sign specified spaces which allows 15-minute parking if you are going to local businesses for pickup and takeout.

The parking meter rate is $2 per hour and there is a three-hour maximum daily parking limit Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on street and in hourly metered lots, with the exception of the David S. Howes lot which is monitored 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.  Metered parking is free outside these hours; however, on street parking in the downtown core is prohibited from 3 a.m. to 6 a.m.

All day parking is available at the Ontario St garage, Garden Park / Carlisle St garage, and at the St. Paul / Westchester parking lot.

Honk Mobile users will pay a $0.45 service fee per transaction in addition to normal parking rates.

For location specific information, please use the interactive map below. Click on the green P icons in the interactive map below to find specific information on each lot.

August Downtown Merchant Validated Parking Pilot

The City of St. Catharines is launching a Downtown Merchant Validated Parking pilot project throughout August to make visiting the downtown core more convenient while supporting local businesses.

Customers who visit participating downtown businesses can receive up to two hours of free parking through validation using the HONK parking platform.

How it works:

1. Park in an eligible municipal paid parking space.

2. Visit a participating downtown business and obtain a validation QR code.

3. Scan the QR code with your cellphone and enter your licence plate number.

4. Receive up to two hours of validated parking.

No app download, account creation, email address or payment information is required.

The pilot is available at:

• Paid on-street parking

• City-owned surface parking lots

• Ontario Street Parking Garage

The Garden Park / Carlisle Street Parking Garage is not included, as it does not permit unpaid exits.

One validation is permitted per licence plate, per day. Existing three-hour daily parking limits remain in effect for City-owned lots and on-street parking spaces.

The pilot is delivered in partnership with the St. Catharines Downtown Association and is part of the City's Downtown Stabilization, Safety and Reinvestment Plan, which was approved by City Council in January 2026 to support the long-term success of the downtown core.