NOBLESVILLE, Ind. (WISH) — Parking in downtown Noblesville has been a headache for many drivers.

The city is looking to make some changes after numerous complaints from the public.

People who talked to News 8 said being unable to find a place to park keeps them from wanting to go to businesses downtown. Others said there just aren’t enough all-day spots.

The current parking ordinance has been in existence since 1989 when there was no Hamilton County Government and Judicial Center downtown next to the Courthouse. The city’s population then was a third of today’s, and the number of downtown businesses was a fewer.

Under the new proposal released Thursday, downtown parking could be separated into three locations:

• Paid parking lots.
• 250 to 300 free on-street spaces.
• A new tic-tac-toe board or “hashtag” area that includes the downtown Courthous Square and a block away in each direction.

The hashtag area would limit drivers to two consecutive hours of free parking per day. City officials said by capping it at two consecutive hours, the hashtag area encourages a turnover of parking. It also prevents drivers from moving their cars from space to space every few hours.

“Usually you have to park quite a ways, and there aren’t too many places that are free, so it’s usually quite a distance in walking and I have a little one,” said Noblesville driver Jenny Thompson.

“Just right now, we’d like to go out to eat, and we’ve driven around several minutes around the Square looking for a place,” said Noblesville driver Amy Jo Farmer.

“By the time they have lunch, they don’t really have time to shop if they are parked on the two block radius,” said Noblesville driver Renee Sellers.

The plan also calls for new 20-minute parking spots for quick access. The two-hour parking zone would be enforced from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. This would be a change from the previous start time of 8 a.m.

If the proposal is approved, the new parking changes would begin Jan. 1.