Motorists who leave their vehicles parked at Columbia Regional Airport for 45 days or longer would risk having their cars towed under a new proposed law the Columbia City Council will consider Tuesday.
Travelers with plans to be out of the city for extended periods of time would still be able to park at the airport without risk of being towed, as long as they filled out authorization forms letting the airport know about their plans, airport manager Mike Parks said.
Airport leaders have expressed concern over the optics of vehicles abandoned in the lot. The Missourian observed waist-high weeds growing around one white SUV with a South Carolina license plate parked in the gravel area of the airport’s overflow lot.
“We have had challenges with people abandoning vehicles out here, storing vehicles out here for excessive periods of time,” Parks said Wednesday during an Airport Advisory Board meeting. “The whole intent of the parking lots at the airport is for users of the airport.”
The parking proposal is the latest example of airport leaders trying to improve the overall experience for travelers flying in and out of Columbia. In fall 2022, the city completed a $23 million expansion of the airport terminal designed to provide passengers with more amenities and persuade airlines to add more flights.
Currently, Fort Worth-based American Airlines offers only six departures per day — three each to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and Chicago O’Hare International Airport. But beginning Sept. 25, Chicago-based United Airlines plans to begin offering new flights to Denver and Chicago.
The council meeting is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. at the Daniel Boone City Building, 701 E. Broadway.
The proposed ordinance would limit parking to no more than 30 days for travelers who haven’t made other arrangements with the airport, and after that time, cars would be subject to receiving daily parking tickets. Cars that remained after 45 days could then be towed, according to a staff report that will be presented to the council on Tuesday.
“A lot of this is going to be educating the public. Our goal is not to go out and start towing a bunch of vehicles because we have the ordinance,” Parks said. “The intent is to clean up a problem that we have seen and identified.”
Should the City Council approve the Airport Advisory Board’s proposal, it is scheduled to be implemented immediately.
Airport leaders are planning to install signs notifying travelers about the new parking rules.
Also, portions of the airport parking facility would be designated for short-term travelers, long-term travelers and airport staff.
