City of Bend making changes in bid to curb problems at downtown parking garage

Rooftop parking ends; Access gates may end free parking

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- The city of Bend, police and nearby downtown restaurants are coming together to implement some new rules to curb vandalism and other issues at the Centennial Parking Garage.

Tobias Marx, manager of the city's Parking Services Division, said Thursday the parking plaza has seen an increase in vandalism since the coronavirus outbreak.

"Since COVID-19 there has been a spike," Marx said. "They (security) are finding people sleeping in the staircase at night."

Across the alley, at J Dub Restaurant, Jon Weber said a glass bottle was thrown from the rooftop of the parking structure onto his restaurant's patio.

"It shattered right here," Weber said, standing near his patio tables. "I had people sitting here, and somebody could have been seriously injured."

Bend police said they are aware of some of the troubles facing the parking garage, but a spokesman said they cannot arrest people for violations, and noise complaints and minors breaking curfew are considered violations.

As far as transients, police said it's hard to implement trespassing laws, because the parking garage is on city property.

The city has already implemented one change, closing vehicle access to the parking garage's roof.

"Since then, we have heard reports from the Oxford Hotel and from Putnam Pointe that definitely the noise level has gone down," Marx said.

The city also wants to implement access control to the parking garage which would involve installing gates at the Northwest Lava Road entrance.

That could eliminate the garage's free three-hour parking.

Access control gates could be installed as soon as September.