The warm weather’s here, sort of, and once again The Saratogian is making its parking lot available to local nonprofits for fundraising.

Last year organizations raised more than $46,000 total by collecting fees for parking in The Saratogian’s lot off Lake Avenue. It’s a great way for a group that benefits the community to raise hundreds of dollars in a single day. And for visitors, a ten dollar contribution helps a local cause and buys you a parking space in the heart of downtown for the entire evening. All the money collected goes directly to the organization working that day.

Most Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights and some holidays are booked by one group or another through August, and many dates are booked through October. There are still some openings. People interested in securing a date for their nonprofit should call Rhoda Pickus at 583-8702.

The lot is private property and people parked on non-fundraising days risk being towed at their expense. Sorry, I can’t change that. But I can credit Publisher Mike O’Sullivan for creating The Saratogian Parking Lot/Community Fundraising Partnership, and I do encourage those of you enjoying downtown to support local groups on the evenings that they are charging for parking.