Free parking ends for Palace Theatre patrons at Greensburg’s Bell Way Garage

Visitors to the Palace Theatre in downtown Greensburg can no longer park for free in the Bell Way Garage on Otterman Street.

The Westmoreland Cultural Trust, the nonprofit that owns the theater, declined in January to renew its previous partnership with the city for parking at the garage, according to Mayor Robb Bell.

Under the previous arrangement, the trust paid nearly $3,500 a month to cover parking costs for visitors to the historic venue, which seats more than 1,300 people, said Daniel Stainer, the nonprofit’s director of marketing and patron experience.

When the city reached out to the nonprofit at the end of last year about renewing that deal, the trust declined.

“They sent us a letter basically stating they wanted to end that program and that customers could pay as they left the garage,” Bell said.

Now, Palace Theatre visitors can prepay a $4 parking fee and scan their receipt as they exit the garage, Stainer said.

“Although the Bell Garage is owned and operated by the city of Greensburg,” Stainer said, “we recognize that its proximity to the Palace Theatre makes it a popular parking location, and we are glad that we were able to work out a flat $4 event rate for our patrons.”

The special event rate remains in effect until midnight. After that, the usual hourly rate for the garage kicks in, Bell said.

However, the new system has already drawn fire online. Patrons recently took to social media to lament long wait times to exit the facility following shows, with some describing significant bottlenecks at the gate.

Bell noted that the backlog of vehicles also was caused by the sheer volume of traffic and the traffic light located at the intersection of Otterman Street and Route 130, stating it takes about an hour for 300 vehicles to exit the garage.

“It’s kind of frustrating, because people think it’s the city that created this problem, but it’s not the city,” Bell said. “We just have to respond to what the Cultural Trust wants.”

The parking change comes as the theater prepares for a busy spring during its centennial celebration year. High-profile upcoming performances at the venue include the Yellow Brick Joel tribute tonight, followed by Celtic Connections on SaturdayMarch7, the Westmoreland Symphony Orchestra’s Spring Symphony on March 14 and Steven Curtis Chapman on March 15. The Irish dance spectacle Rhythm of the Dance is also scheduled for March 17.