Agreement Frees Up More Public Parking In Downtown Smithfield

SMITHFIELD, N.C. – More parking spaces are being made available to the public in downtown Smithfield by moving some Johnston County employees to a privately owned parking lot.

Under an agreement involving the Town of Smithfield, Johnston County and the Johnston County Building Industry Association, county employees will be allowed to park at the association’s property at no cost.

That will free spaces previously used by county employees for public use.

Most of the newly available spaces are in the public parking area behind the Johnston County Land Use Center and the Public Library of Johnston County and Smithfield, between North Third and North Fourth streets.

The arrangement comes as Smithfield continues trying to address downtown parking concerns following the removal of on-street parking along Market Street earlier this year.

NCDOT removed approximately 70 parking spaces along Market Street between Second and North Seventh streets as part of a safety plan for the U.S. 70 Business corridor. State transportation officials cited more than 500 crashes during a five-year period, many involving parked vehicles.

The Smithfield Town Council initially asked NCDOT to delay the parking removal while a local task force studied alternatives. NCDOT moved ahead with the change in January.

Town officials later agreed to work with NCDOT on a broader downtown traffic plan that includes converting portions of Second, Third and Johnston streets to one-way traffic and creating angled parking to replace some of the lost spaces.

Interim Town Manager Kimberly Pickett said the latest arrangement makes use of parking that is already available downtown.

“We know parking is important to our downtown businesses, County employees and, most importantly, the people who come downtown every day,” Pickett said. “We may not control what happens on Market Street, but we can continue looking for solutions. This is a great example of three organizations working together to make better use of the parking we already have.”

There is no cost associated with the arrangement.

The Johnston County Building Industry Association parking lot will not be opened to the general public. Its lot will instead be used by county employees, leaving more existing public spaces near the Land Use Center, library and other downtown destinations available for visitors.

The town said it will continue looking for additional ways to address downtown parking and access.