Cleveland.com is reporting that the developer of the downtown Cleveland casino is looking to acquire a parking garage from the city:

The developer of a casino in Cleveland’s historic Higbee building has offered the city $21 million for the nearby Gateway North parking garage.

It’s a proposal that officials said Wednesday would benefit both sides by helping the cash-strapped city get out from under a garage that is described as seldom used while putting the developer a giant step closer to having a parking plan that could accommodate up to 5 million annual visitors.

Officials at Rock Ohio Caesars say that the casino-goers’ experience begins when they park their car. And Rock Ohio Caesars wants to wow them. But officials add that having a seamless parking plan is important for securing financing for the $350 million project.

This seems to make a ton of sense. It won’t matter for high rollers arriving in a limousine, but for visitors parking their cars, the experience needs to be positive from the beginning.

Also, let’s hope the casino operators don’t make the same mistakes that were made in Pittsburgh. The parking needs to be affordable!