Ahead of Thursday night's season opener against Saginaw, the Spitfires are doubling the number of free parking spaces available at the WFCU Centre.
The 900 additional spots are right beside the main lot and accessible from Lauzon Rd.
Windsor Spitfires Director of Business Development Steve Horne says it's the same area that was used several years ago, and that was opened up as paid parking during the Memorial Cup.
"I'm excited about it because when families arrive here they have options that are right beside the facility and very close proximity — when you have that it makes the entire fan experience even better," says Horne. "That's another additional 900 free parking spots right beside the general lot for fans coming down to the games," says Horne. "If fans haven't been here for a number of years in '09/'10 we had that same area and it's a convenient lot that enhances the parking experience."
(Courtesy Windsor Spitfires)
The overflow lot — commonly known as the 'Lear Lot' — is located off of Lauzon Rd. It was used for the same purpose back in 2009/2010 by the Spits and for paid parking during the Memorial Cup.
The additional spaces mean there are roughly 1,800 free parking spots at the arena complex.
"I think that the way the facility is situated it's nice to have on site additional parking that's really close to the actual footprint of the facility," says Horne. "So, from that standpoint and from the shuttle services that we have it's definitely an enhancement."
Horne says the plan is for the additional spots to be made available throughout the season; however, the team will continue to monitor how much they're used.