CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WBOY) — The Harrison County Commission is considering purchasing three parking lots on Washington Avenue that are currently privately owned and require drivers to pay for parking using an app.

During its 9 a.m. meeting on Wednesday, two options were presented on the agenda for the parking lots. The first option was to purchase the lots outright for $600,000 and the second option was a 10-year triple net lease for $4,000 a month.

There was much discussion about how the Commission would like to go about making a decision. Ultimately, all commissioners agreed that there were still some details they needed to nail down regarding how they would, and how much they would charge for parking in the lots if they did choose either option. They moved to the next item on the agenda after deciding that they would like to counter the independent company with a better deal, resulting in no action being taken.

Susan Thomas, (D) President of the Harrison County Commission, explained why the Commission didn’t decide on either option during the meeting.

“One option was to lease it for a period of 10 years, I personally am not for that but it was the lesser of the two,” Thomas said. “I don’t want to lease anything, I don’t want to put the county into any more debt, so I’m not for that. If we can agree to a price to pay outright for the lots, then I could personally vote for that.”

While discussing what the lots would be used for, the Commission President mentioned that they would like to see something done with the parking lots. If they were to purchase the parking lots, it would benefit individuals who are visiting businesses in the city, like the Courthouse, but it would also help with employee parking as well.

The city used to own the three lots behind the Harrison County Courthouse but they were sold to an independent company. Thomas told 12 News that many have received fines because of the app used to pay for parking in the lots, whether it be from those individuals not knowing how to use the app, or just not using it the right way.

The consideration of purchasing the parking lots will possibly be back on the agenda if a deal can be reached.