NJ Mall Introduces $10 Paid Parking Near Entrances

• A South Jersey shopping mall just launched a new parking policy
• Shoppers are already weighing in with strong opinions
• Could this idea spread to other shopping areas in New Jersey?

Would You Pay to Park at a NJ Mall?

Here's a question: would you pay for a good parking spot at a mall in New Jersey?

Before you answer that, consider these two things.

First, obviously, New Jersey and malls have been synonymous for decades, but we find ourselves in an era now where traditional shopping centers are in flux.

We've documented some struggling properties, like Hamilton Mall in Mays Landing, which seems to be losing stores left and right. Other spots like Freehold Raceway Mall are evolving with new stores. You also have the old Echelon Mall site, which was partially demolished, and it became the Voorhees Town Center, which combined shopping with residential space.

Secondly, having to pay to park isn't exactly a foreign concept. If you want to shop in a city's downtown area, you'll probably have to feed a parking meter. And, if you've been to American Dream at the Meadowlands to buy some stuff, you've already paid to park in their garage.

• READ MORE: Don’t Fall for the $100 Electric Bill Scam in New Jersey

But I'm talking about having to pay for a good parking spot and a regular ol' shopping mall.

That's exactly what's now happening at Deptford Mall in South Jersey.

Deptford Mall's $10 Parking Test

We heard rumblings about this a few days ago and then FOX 29 recently covered it. They asked the same question that we are: How much are you willing to pay for a prime parking spot at your local shopping mall?

The answer at Deptford Mall: $10.

And that's not for a spot in a garage, nor is it a spot in a special area. The mall has chosen about 40 traditional parking spots that are near its entrances and those spots have signs with QR codes. You scan the code, pay ten bucks, and you can park there.

If you don't want to pay to park there (and be 20 or 30 feet closer to the mall's entrance), all you have to do is just go over a few spots and pull in for free.

Shoppers React

FOX 29 spoke to a bunch of shoppers and no one really had anything positive to say about the situation.

One person told the station,

I think it’s ridiculous. I think they already make enough money in the stores as is. I think this is somewheres for people to come and gather. People come here just to come eat sometimes. I don’t think they should be charging 10 dollars to park. That seems a little ridiculous to me.

And we kinda agree.

Sure, businesses these days are looking for alternate sources of revenue, but this feels like one of those ideas that sounds good on paper but really isn't in reality.

Could This Spread?

I mean, would you pay $5 for a close parking spot at your neighborhood Walmart or Target? Would you drop $10 to be close to the door at ShopRite or Acme?

• READ MORE: Remember When Parking Was Simple in South Jersey?

Nope.

I mean, if you go to a casino in Atlantic City on a weekend, you'll drop $25 or $30 to park. If you go to Great Adventure, I believe parking is around $35 (having just been to Hersheypark in PA, that's what it is there, too). And if you want to see your favorite pro sports team in action, you might need a small loan to enter one of those parking lots.

But we're talking about wandering around a mall here.

What if I want to run into a store in the mall and they don't have what I want? I just dropped $10 for nothing. I'd rather spend that $10 buying lunch in their food court than having to pay to park.

And I can picture this getting really absurd.

Imagine store parking with tiered pricing — $15 to park really close to a store's front door, or only $10 if you're a little further away, and maybe those spots out in no man's land are the only ones that are free? Maybe they'll think of a surcharge if you want to park near one of those shopping cart corrals so you don't have to walk too far to put your cart back.

Heck, while we're at it, why not just have a monthly parking subscription service! For only $29.99/month, you can park in any premium spot!

For the record, I'm not suggesting Deptford Mall is considering those things, but you get my point.

We're going to have to see how this pans out. If it's successful, this concept is going to quickly spread to other malls and shopping centers in the state — or, hopefully, it'll be just one of those things that just quietly goes away.