Let's face it, parking can be a real pain. Whether in a downtown area or a small town, finding the perfect, inexpensive place to plop your vehicle with confidence can be rather tricky. We drove to Green Bay for a pre-season Packers' game a few weeks ago and they charged us $30 to park. And that would almost be a good deal in downtown Chicago.

According to a June 2001 Colliers International survey of parking costs nationwide, parking rates in downtown areas are increasing at a rate well above the national rate of inflation. The survey found monthly parking rates to be as high as $590 in New York and up to $40 for hourly parking. Park this, we say!

Though the study found Milwaukee's rates to be below the national average, the numbers they came up with are still pretty hard to swallow. The study found reserved monthly rates average $157.50, $127.50 for unreserved monthly and $12.50 for daily parking (eight hours) in underground and covered parking garages in downtown.

These rates seem a bit high, so we sent our crack team of downtown parking experts out to get the real story on parking rates. Leaving the hourly metered spots (which can be rather pricey if you fail to plug them) out of this story, we don't believe the high-priced hype -- it can easy and rather inexpensive to park in downtown Milwaukee. Here's how.

It costs only $65 per month to park in the Third Ward parking structure, at the corner of Water and Chicago (a pretty vital intersection on the Trolley route), and there are plenty of unreserved daily spots left in that structure.

The following are some other cheap, even free, parking alternatives you might want to try.

There are some great monthly rates to be found, especially if you're flexible.

For instance, the CPS lot at Juneau and Broadway (called the Church Lot) sells monthly passes for only $41 and the Cocoa Lot at N. 6th St. and Highland Ave. costs $55 (call 223-4722 for availability and other rate quotes). Monthly parking at the Italian Community Center goes for only $25 (call 414-223-2197) and lots on Marshall and Cass Sts. and 801 W. Wisconsin Ave. run for $60 (call 414-273-7241).

Keep in mind that with the Milwaukee County Transit Trolleys running every 10-15 minutes, it's a snap to park and ride near the Water St. or Wisconsin Ave. corridors. For only 50¢ each way, you'll still save more than $20 a month parking further south or west along these routes.