In August, Sedona City Council voted on what Uptown parking will look like for years to come. It set maximum hourly rates for the new garage, City Lot 5 and the Main Street meters. It moved forward a framework to restrict street parking on three residential blocks. It also took up a plan for where Uptown's workers would park. None of that is in effect today, and none of it can start until one building on Forest Road opens.
That building keeps slipping. This fall, Uptown parks the way it did before any of those votes.
Everything Waits on One Building
The Uptown Parking Garage sits at 430 and 460 Forest Road. According to the Sedona Red Rock News, work began in May 2025 with a planned opening by spring break 2026. That date moved to June, and by early September the paper reported an expected opening in December or January. The city puts the total project cost at about $28.25 million. The project's own website now lists completion as "Early 2027."
The latest holdup is water pressure. The 6-inch main that feeds the garage's sprinkler lines moves water faster than plumbing codes allow, so the line needs a new 10-inch pipe. Arizona Water Co. chose to install a 16-inch main and pay the extra cost itself. Deputy City Manager Andy Dickey explained the fix to council:
"Once we upgrade the size of the [water] line, it drops those velocities down and brings us into a safe condition."
On Aug. 25, council voted 6-0 to approve an agreement with Arizona Water Co. and the Sedona Fire District. It also approved a $3,741,285.50 contract with J. Banicki Construction Inc. About $2.54 million of that contract covers Forest Road improvements, and roughly $1.2 million covers the water upgrades. City staff said work on the garage's serpentine facade, which had structural issues, was scheduled to wrap up the same day.
What Uptown Parking Costs This Fall Versus What Council Approved
The city's Uptown parking page still describes the current system. Uptown has two all-day free lots and four 3-hour free lots. Some of them are leased by the city from private businesses, so signed spaces such as employee-only spots still apply. Main Street meters run from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a week. Pay stations take credit cards or the pay-by-phone app, which adds a 10-cent convenience fee. They don't take cash.
Here is today's meter schedule next to the maximums council set on Aug. 25:
| In effect now | Approved maximum, not yet in force | |
|---|---|---|
| Main Street / SR 89A meters | First 15 min free, then $2/hr for hours 1–3, $4 for hour 4, $6 for hour 5 | $4/hr with a 3-hour limit, $5/hr in peak season |
| Jordan Road meters | Not listed on the city's current page | $4/hr with a 3-hour limit, $5/hr in peak season |
| Garage and City Lot 5 | Garage not open | $2.50/hr, $3.50/hr in peak season |
| Hours | 9 a.m.–6 p.m., free before and after | 9 a.m.–6 p.m., no parking midnight–5 a.m. |
The new schedule defines peak season as March through May and September through November. Under it, an October afternoon at a Main Street meter would cost $5 an hour. At today's rates, a two-hour stop costs $4 in total.
The approved figures are ceilings. During the meeting, Councilman Pete Furman asked whether the city had any example of setting a fee schedule and then charging less than it. City Manager Anette Spickard could not give one.
The Six-Month Clock Behind the Delay
The garage delay pushes everything back further than it first appears. City staff told the Red Rock News they want to monitor Uptown for at least six months after the garage opens before any of the Aug. 25 changes take effect.
So the start date for the new fees depends on two things in sequence: the garage opening, then half a year of observation. If the garage opens in early 2027, as its project site now says, the six months end in the second half of 2027. The current free lots and the $2 first-hour meter rate stay in place through that whole period unless the city changes course.
Three Blocks With Their Own Rules on Hold
The residential permit program covers Van Deren, Price and Smith roads, bounded by Schnebly Road to the north and Forest Road to the south. Council voted 5-1 to move it forward, with Councilwoman Kathy Kinsella opposed. If it is ever activated, all non-resident street parking in those blocks would be prohibited. Visitors would use the garage or other public and private lots instead.
The program is not automatic. Any one of six conditions could trigger it:
- Emergency access or public safety being compromised
- Spillover parking from the garage onto residential streets
- Resident feedback
- Parking use and occupancy data
- A recommendation from the Parking Work Group
- Direction from the council
The city's Sept. 23 roundup of the August meeting says council directed readiness work only. The program would be activated "with future Council authorization" if conditions call for it. Dickey said "it's our intention" to bring the program back to council for final approval.
One of the six triggers, spillover from the garage, can't happen until the garage is open. The city also hasn't decided whether permits will be physical placards or a digital database. Either way, Sedona Police Department staff would enforce the program with mobile license plate readers. On Jan. 27, 2026, council approved a data governance policy that limits that technology to parking purposes and prohibits sharing with outside agencies.
The Piece Still Being Worked Out
Employee parking is the one part of the plan that didn't get a vote. The proposal would have given free parking to registered carpools of two or more employees. Single-occupancy employee vehicles would have paid $2 a day, and a monthly pass would have cost $25. It identified about 205 potential employee spaces, roughly 104 of them drawn from the city's public parking inventory. Council tabled the proposal and returned to it later without adopting it. Council also told Spickard to work with the Parking Work Group on a revised plan that costs Uptown workers less and avoids a gift clause problem.
The city's Sept. 23 roundup says the work group is refining that strategy and will bring a new recommendation to council. The city also plans to negotiate surface-lot leases. Sedona Matters reported that the work group was scheduled to discuss employee parking and fees on Oct. 8.
Forest Road While You Wait
Garage construction has closed the public parking area on Forest Road. The short stretch in front of the site is regularly closed to all vehicles, with lane restrictions, reduced speeds and rough pavement. Crews are supposed to keep residents' access open throughout. The project's hotline is (928) 852-4164.
The Banicki contract also pays for new sidewalks on both the north and south sides of Forest Road, running from the garage to the existing sidewalks that connect to State Route 89A.
A possible Phase 2 would bring construction closer to the permit blocks. Council did not authorize it in August. That phase would extend the water main upgrades up Van Deren Road and across Schnebly Road to Jordan Road, upsizing the city's line from 6 to 8 inches. It is estimated at about $2.5 million, with construction starting next summer at the earliest and finishing in December 2027.
Fall Dates That Bring You Into Town
With the free lots unchanged, the fall calendar plays out under the old rules. Sedona Shuttle Connect runs Thursday through Sunday from 6:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. It costs $2 per rider, or $1 for seniors, and rides can be booked by app or phone. Its service area includes Chapel of the Holy Cross and the Mystic Hills/Chapel neighborhoods. The city also plans a fall pilot with the U.S. Forest Service running 30-minute service on Route 14, Soldier's Pass, but hasn't announced a start date.
- Oct. 10–11: The Sedona Arts Festival at Sedona Red Rock High School, 995 Upper Red Rock Loop Road. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.
- Oct. 16–24: The 22nd Annual Sedona Plein Air Festival, with public events Oct. 19–24 and a community paint-out and final sale on Oct. 24.
- Oct. 17: Fest of Fall, noon to 6 p.m. at Posse Grounds Park, 525 Posse Ground Rd. The listing says Shuttle Connect can take riders there for $2.
- Oct. 31: Uptown Trick or Treat, 5 to 8 p.m. Under the current rules, Main Street meters stop charging at 6 p.m.
- Nov. 1: Día de los Muertos at Tlaquepaque.
Looking further out, the city's feasibility study for an Uptown circulator would connect the new garage with Uptown, Tlaquepaque and Hillside Sedona. Like the new rates and the permit zone, that route depends on the garage being open.
If you own on Van Deren, Price or Smith, or anywhere near Forest Road, and want to talk through how the garage timeline and a possible permit zone fit your plans, Sylvia Ray is glad to sit down for a market consultation. She can also prepare a free home valuation that reflects how Uptown parking works today.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
