The Downtown Parking District was established in 1976 to provide funding for economic promotion and public parking in downtown Salem. Each business within the District is assessed a proportional share of the operation and maintenance costs of the District customer parking spaces. Tax dollars are used to support both on-street parking spaces downtown and off-street parking at Chemeketa, Liberty, and Marion parking structures.

Payment Options

• Online: You may pay online with Visa, MasterCard, and eCheck, using a secure website called ePayments. Online transactions may take three business days to process.
  • Get help with online payments
• Telephone: Call 1-844-739-1117 and have your credit card available. Phone transactions may take three business days to process.
  • Get help with phone payments
• Mail: Mail your check to the City’s Finance Office.
• Drop Box: You can drop off your payment at a secure drop box, but you should allow three business days to process the payment. Drop boxes are located:
  • On the 500 block of Liberty Street SE at the bus turn out between Salem City Hall and the Salem Library
  • In front of the City’s Customer Service Center
  • At the West Salem Library, 395 Glen Creek Road NW

Same-Day Posting

If you want your payment to be posted on the day you make the payment, you must pay in person at the City’s Finance Office.

Payment Frequency

Parking tax payments are due in full, unless a business selects an optional payment plan. Statement Form A must be submitted by the due date of the first payment.

• Annual – July 30
• Semi-annual
  • 1st installment – July 30
  • 2nd installment – January 30
• Quarterly
  • 1st installment – July 30
  • 2nd installment – October 30
  • 3rd installment – January 30
  • 4th installment – April 30
• Monthly – the 30th of each month

Late Fee

A penalty of 10 percent is imposed on all overdue accounts. In addition, interest of one percent per

month is charged from the date of delinquency until paid. Late payments are subject to interest and penalty regardless if an appeal or grievance has been filed.

To request a waiver of late fees, you must first pay the invoiced amount. After full payment is made, you may submit an appeal, within 30 days of the invoice due date.

Assessment Formula

Each business pays a share of the Parking District operating budget based on the number of customer parking spaces needed by the business according to the assessment formula. The formula is based on:

• Business type
• Gross floor area
• Customer parking demand

The “demand factor” is the number of customer parking spaces required by a particular type of business for every 1,000 square feet of gross floor area. Gross floor area includes: walls, corridors, stairways, restrooms, closets, storage rooms, etc.

Assessment Adjustments

Businesses open to the public less than 20 hours a week, between the hours of 9 a.m. and 7 p.m., may be eligible to receive a credit of 50 percent of the basic tax, but are still subject to the minimum tax due.

If your business moves into the Downtown Parking District in the middle of the year, a partial year of operations credit is pro-rated on a daily basis. Use the Partial Year of Operations for New Business Form C to calculate your pro-rated credit.

If your business moves out of the Downtown Parking District before the end of the year, an adjustment will be made based on the business closure date. Partial year of operations tax credits are pro-rated on a daily basis. Use the Partial Year of Operations for Discontinued/Moved Business Form D.

Appeal Process

An appeal process for tax statement calculations is available to businesses. Page 8 of the Downtown Parking Tax information booklet describes how to request a tax redetermination or file an appeal.

For more information about the Downtown Parking Tax, view chapter 7 of the Salem Revised Code.