Parking in downtown Canton, GA: the deck, the lots and event days

Who publishes the parking facts

The City of Canton has no parking page. We checked cantonga.gov on 2026-10-18 for lots, space counts, fees, time limits, meters and pay apps, and found none. The City’s 2023 downtown map marks parking areas with a symbol but gives no numbers.

Every count on this page comes from Explore Canton’s parking guide. Explore Canton (explorecantonga.com) is the visitor website linked from the City’s own menu, and its footer gives the City Hall address and phone. It does not say who runs it, so we cite it by name.

• Explore Canton (explorecantonga.com) is the visitor website linked from the City's own menu. Its footer gives the City Hall address, 110 Academy Street, and phone, 770-704-1500. Explore Canton: Who We Are
• Explore Canton says downtown has free parking. Its guide lists street parking on North St., W. Main St., E. Main St., S. Church St., E. Marietta St., Archer St. and Railroad St. Explore Canton: Parking in Downtown Canton

The deck and the lots

All three are listed as free. These are Explore Canton’s figures, not our own counts.

Canton Downtown Parking Deck

A two-level deck with 102 spaces, 4 of them accessible, about 150 m from Cannon Park in a straight line. You enter the bottom level from West Marietta Street and the top level from behind City Hall. Explore Canton publishes the address as a range, 345-303 W. Marietta St. History Cherokee separately describes a free public-use parking garage at 200 W. Marietta Street, across from the History Center. It may be the same deck, but neither source says so.

• The two-level Canton Downtown Parking Deck, 345-303 W. Marietta St., has 102 spaces. A solar array on the top level powers 10 public electric car charging stations. Explore Canton: Parking in Downtown Canton

Cannon Park lots

Two lots shared by Cannon Park, the Historic Jones Building and the Cherokee County Water and Sewerage Authority, about 50 m from the gazebo: 36 spaces in all. Four accessible spaces are by the Water and Sewerage Authority and two by the Jones Building. Explore Canton’s map labels Cannon Park as “Central Park”.

Elizabeth Street and the Police Department lot

118 spaces along Elizabeth Street and behind the Police Department at 151 Elizabeth Street, 5 of them accessible, about 225 m from Cannon Park. Some sections are reserved for city employees, so read the signs before you leave the car. This is the former City Hall, now the Police Department and Municipal Court.

• The former City Hall at 151 Elizabeth Street now serves as the Canton Police Department and Municipal Court building. City of Canton: City Hall

Street parking, street by street

Explore Canton counts these free street spaces. Its counts add up to 269, plus 12 more off-street spots at the exit of North Street.

• North St.: 62 spaces, 1 accessible.
• East Main St.: 73 spaces, 4 accessible.
• West Main St.: 48 spaces, 2 accessible.
• South Church St.: 39 spaces.
• East Marietta St.: 23 spaces.
• Archer St.: 13 spaces.
• Railroad St.: 11 spaces.

The guide gives no accessible count for South Church, East Marietta, Archer or Railroad streets.

A normal day versus an event day

Normal day

On a normal day, park in the deck or on the street and walk. No source we found publishes a time limit, a fee or a meter for downtown. When we searched on Oct. 18, 2026, the top results for downtown Canton parking were news stories from 2014 about enforcement. We could not confirm that any of those rules still apply, so we print none. Read the signs where you park.

Event day

• Explore Canton notes that street parking and lots on and around Main Street may be limited or unavailable on event days, such as First Fridays. Explore Canton: Parking in Downtown Canton

Explore Canton warns that street parking and the surface lots on and around Main Street may be limited or unavailable on event days. Its warning names Main Street, and the deck and the Elizabeth Street lot are both off Main Street.

• First Fridays run on the first Friday of each month from May through October, 6 to 9 p.m. The City’s First Fridays page gives no parking instructions. The 2026 season ended on Oct. 2, and 2027 dates are not posted yet as of Oct. 18, 2026. See First Fridays.
• The Christmas Parade: the 2026 parade is Saturday, Dec. 12, at 6 p.m., after the Merry Market in Cannon Park (City calendar, checked Nov. 1, 2026). In 2025 the 34th parade was Saturday, Dec. 13. We have not found a City page with parade parking or road closures. See the holiday season page.
• The farmers market meets in Brown Park, between the History Center and the Police Department, so the Elizabeth Street lot is the closest listed lot. The 2026 season ran on Saturdays from May 30 to Aug. 29. See the farmers market page.

• The City holds First Fridays on the first Friday of each month from May through October, 6 to 9 p.m. in Downtown Canton, with live music, food and late shopping. It is free. City of Canton: First Fridays

Accessible parking

Explore Canton counts accessible spaces as 4 in the deck, 6 in the Cannon Park lots, 5 at the Police Department lot, and 1, 2 and 4 on North, West Main and East Main streets. History Cherokee says the Cherokee County History Center at 221 E. Marietta Street is one story and fully wheelchair accessible, and it provides free parking for museum guests.

Charging an electric car

The top level of the downtown deck is partly covered by an 80 kW solar array that powers 10 public electric-vehicle charging stations. Explore Canton does not publish a charging fee or a time limit for those bays. The top level is reached from behind City Hall at 110 Academy Street.

The Mill, the theatre and the river parks

We found no published parking count for The Mill on Etowah, about 456 m from Cannon Park in a straight line. Etowah River Tubing checks riders in at the lot to the right of The Mill. The City’s theatre page publishes no parking details for the Canton Theatre; the Cannon Park lots and East Main Street are the nearest listed spaces. Etowah River Park and Heritage Park are drives, covered on the river parks page.

What we will add

If the City or the Canton Police Department publishes time limits, enforcement rules or event closures, we will add them with the date we checked. To plan the rest of your visit, use the day planner. Spot something new? Tell us on the contact page.

Questions

Dates, rules and hours can change. The organisers have the final word: City of Canton