Parking Plan

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Parking Plan

• City of Hood River
• May 13, 2008

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Purpose

• Parking Plan (March 2008)
• Council Directed
• Foster Discussion
• Evaluate Input to assist Council
• Were in this together

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Agenda

• Introduction
• Brief History
• Parking Study
• Parking Plan
• Discussion
• Recommendations
• Adjourn

4
History

• Early Parking Plans
• Parking Structure
• 1994 Design/Funded
• Small
• Not wanted
• Not needed

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History

• Early Parking Plans
• Initiatives
• 2 Studies
• 4 Plans
• Chalking
• Parking Zones
• Meters
• HRDBA/City Parking Committees

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History

• HRDBA/City Committee
• An ordinance establishing a downtown parking
  district that prohibits employer/employee
  parking.
• Recommend a parking study be done by a
  professional parking consultant to determine the
  supply/demand of parking now and in the future
• Discount Tickets
• 30 Minutes Free
• Installation of more Courtesy Meters or
  Courtesy Spots
• Construction Parking

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Parking Study

• 2005

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Parking Study

• Stakeholder Interviews

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Parking Study

• What is your impression of the current parking
  situation in downtown Hood River? Do you have any
  complaints about the current parking system?
• What are the differences in parking occupancies
  between the summer peak (May September) and
  the off-peak (October April)?
• What key values or guiding principles should
  shape Hood Rivers downtown parking system in the
  future?
• In your view, what are the most important issue
  or concern to be addressed in Hood Rivers
  Downtown Parking Study?
• What are your thoughts regarding the development
  of remote or satellite employee lots that
  would require employees to park outside the
  downtown and be shuttled in to the downtown? This
  could be a program that is only in effect during
  the peak season?
• Would you or your business support a Customer
  First program that requires employees to park in
  designated parking areas?
• What are your thoughts on the mid to long range
  possibilities of transitioning more downtown
  employees to alternative commute modes to free up
  customer parking (i.e., transit, ridesharing,
  bike, walk, etc.)?
• Would a peak season shuttle between the
  waterfront and the downtown that was available to
  those parked in the Port lot be valuable in
  reducing demand in downtown?
• What specific barriers prevent downtown employees
  from walking, biking or sharing rides to jobs in
  the downtown (i.e. lack of bike parking, work
  schedules, etc)?

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Parking Study

• Are there locations in downtown now that you
  believe would be feasible future parking sites?
  Please identify them.

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Parking Study

• Railroad site only good for east side of
  downtown, since it is uphill to everywhere from
  there
• Lot across from the post office (multiple
  responses from stakeholders)
• 5th and Columbia is the ideal site for customer
  access to downtown
• Behind City Hall (multiple responses from
  stakeholders)
• Full Sail Lot (multiple responses from
  stakeholders)
• Small lot opportunities in the Heights
• The City could change over several of the
  existing lots with multi-tiered parking
  structures. Also, the City could possible partner
  with several property owners in town. Why not
  approach the Elks Lodge or the Hood River News or
  the Hood River Railroad and see if they would
  want to build structures in partnership with the
  City. They could share the proceeds from rented
  spaces in exchange for long-term lease and
  perhaps tax breaks.
• County Building on Sherman has room for a few
  cars
• Front Oak where billboard is
• Across from Astro
• Build into hillside across State from Sheppards
  or City Hall. This would allow access from State
  and Sherman (above). (multiple responses from
  stakeholders)

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Parking Study
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Parking Study

• Inventory
• Conducted in July
• Weekend/Weekday
• On Street
• Off Street

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Parking Study

• Inventory Findings

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Parking Study
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Parking Study
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Parking Study

• Forecasting

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Parking Study

• Demand Forecasting
• 85 Occupancy Optimum Operating Efficiency
• On-Street Occupancy
• Growth Assumptions
• 3
• 4
• 5

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Parking Study

• Parking Management Recommendations

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Parking Study

• 8 Policy Actions
• 20 Policy Recommendations

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Parking Study

• Policy Actions
• Develop and implement minimum parking ratio
  standards for new commercial development in the
  downtown.
• Develop and implement minimum parking ratio
  standards for new commercial development in the
  downtown.
• Establish a Downtown Parking Enterprise Fund as a
  mechanism to direct funds identified for future
  parking into a dedicated fund.
• Initiate a process to evaluate additional sources
  of funding for future parking development and
  parking system management.

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Parking Study

• Policy Actions (cont.)
• Restructure the management policy for the sale of
  off-street monthly passes to be based on actual
  use rather than number of stalls.
• Adopt code language that will allow for the
  establishment and enforcement of an area parking
  permit program.
• Develop a policy that encourages private sector
  development of publicly available parking in the
  downtown to increase access capacity to the
  downtown.
• Adopt a policy that raises monthly parking rates
  by at least the annual cost of living each year.

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Parking Study

• 20 Recommendations
• Short Term
• Mid Term
• Long Term

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Parking Study

• Short Term
• Reduce the number of on-street employee permits
  by transitioning approximately 25 on-street
  permits into the public lot at 5th Columbia.
  Continue transition of on-street permits to
  off-street locations after routine occupancy
  updates
• All on-street employee permits should be
  consolidated to the south side of State Avenue
  and to the area on 6th Street, between Sherman
  and Cascade and on 7th Street, between Oak and
  Columbia
• Change the existing 1-hour time zones located on
  Oak, between 5th 7th Streets to 3-hour meters
• Change the current 10-minute zones on the south
  side of Cascade, between 4th 5th Streets to
  3-hour meters. This would leave the 10-minute
  zones on the north side of the street in place to
  serve the Post Office
• Negotiate shared use and/or lease agreements with
  owners of private surface lots to provide for an
  interim supply of parking per desired use
• Eliminate free parking in the no limit parking
  area on 6th and 7th Streets between Sherman and
  Cascade and replace with 10-hour parking meters.

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Parking Study

• Short Term (Cont)
• Identify ideal locations for new publicly owned
  parking garages
• Clarify the status of existing urban renewal
  funds regarding development of a strategically
  located parking structure in the downtown
• Develop a mitigation plan for publicly available
  parking supply lost to development and/or
  redevelopment of existing City owned parking
  sites
• Re-stripe public inventory of on-street parking

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Parking Study

• Mid Term
• Consider acquiring land from the Mt Hood railway
  to develop a surface parking lot for employee
  parking and event spill over uses
• Initiate development of new parking facility
• Create and implement a package of incentives for
  the private development of publicly available
  parking supplies
• Develop and implement a strategy for future
  parking pricing
• Routinely conduct parking inventory analyses in
  the downtown

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Parking Study

• Long Term
• Complete development and open new supply to serve
  priority patron uses.
• Eliminate the ability to plug 3-hour meters for
  additional time
• Convert 10-hour meters now on the north side of
  State Avenue, between Front and 3rd Street to
  3-hour meters, particularly if new parking supply
  is provided in the east zone of the downtown
  (i.e., east of 3rd Street)

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Parking Study

• Sites Studied
• City Hall
• Railroad
• State Street Parking Lot

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Parking Site
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Parking Study

• Summary
• The parking study found that the current parking
  system in downtown Hood River is operating at a
  high level of efficiency, occupancy and turnover.
  Improvements can be made in the system that will
  assure that the City utilizes its supply in a
  manner that fully maximizes the assets it has.
  Nonetheless, Hood River is moving toward
  conditions that will further constrain the supply
  unless actions are initiated in the very near
  future. These actions will require that Hood
  River be more aggressive in management of its
  existing off-street supply to assure that
  visitors have maximum access to the on-street
  system. Further, the City needs to begin now to
  identify future parking sites (preferably on
  current city owned lots) and protect them.

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Parking Plan

• 2008

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Parking Plan

• Main Goals/Objectives
• Revise Parking Management Plan
• Devise a financial plan
• Ensure adequate number of spaces
• Maintain financially self-sustaining parking
  system
• Deal with Growth

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Parking Plan

• Questions to Consider
• How much of the parking problem is a seasonal
  problem?
• How much is it a perception problem and how much
  is it a lack of facilities problem?
• To what extent does the City have a
  responsibility to provide parking in the downtown
  area?
• Are parking rates in Hood River reasonable?
• Is the City Council willing to take on the
  political challenges that may be presented by
  changes to the parking system?
• Is the business community willing to buy into
  the new plan and to what extent?

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Parking Plan

• Parking Management

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Parking Plan

• Parking Lot Permit System
• Current status
• Spaces Sold Waiting
• Columbia lot 133 131 (2 HC) 18
• East lot 35 35 31
• Front Street lot 21 21 22
• West lot 50 50 33
• Reserved forever

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Parking Plan

• Lot Permit Management
• Reserved spaces
• Columbia Lot - 64 daily vacancy rate
• West Lot 65 daily vacancy rate
• State Street Lot 76 daily vacancy rate
• Front Street Lot 92 daily vacancy rate
• 85 is considered effective peak occupancy

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Parking Plan

• General Permit Plan
• No Reserved Spaces
• Oversell permits per lot
• 20 oversell peak efficiency
• No Guaranteed permits
• Few vs. Many

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Parking Plan

• Meter Pass Management
• 20/Month (_at_0.12/hr)
• 120 passes
• First Come Basis
• Open to everyone
• No limits on amount
• Loss to City - 384/day
• I dont want to walk
• Always an open meter

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• Parking Meter System
• Functions well
• _at_600 meters
• 0.50/hr
• 3-hour limit

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• Meter Problems
• Change
• Malfunctions
• Fines

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• Problem Resolution
• Change
• Smart meters
• Coin
• Credit Card
• Debit Card
• Regular meters
• Cash Key

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• Problem Resolution (cont)
• Malfunctions
• _at_5
• Smart Meters
• Bagging Meters

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• Problem Resolution
• Fines
• Efficient Enforcement
• HRDBA Program
• Free Parking Days
• Ticket Review Process

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• Future Growth and Demand

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• Growth

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Parking Plan

• Additional Demand
• Loss of two private parking lots
• Replaced with commercial buildings
• Art Gallery/Theater
• Building Renovations
• Paris Fair
• Van Metre
• Red Feather
• Carousel Museum
• Law Offices
• Waucoma Hotel
• Double Mountain Brewery
• Street Intersections
• Residential Parking Districts

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Parking Plan

• Conclusion New Parking Facilities are needed
• New Facility is structured parking
• Is this a good conclusion?
• Alternate modes of transport
• I need my car
• No convenient bus service

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Parking Plan

• Consideration of New Facility
• Structured or Surface
• Location
• Public or Private (or both)
• Funding
• Who Pays?
• How Much?

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Parking Plan

• Structure or Surface
• Structure
• More Expensive per Space
• More vehicles per SF
• Security Concerns
• Maintenance Concerns
• Surface
• Not enough available land
• Private lots full or not available

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Parking Plan

• Location
• Post Office Lot
• Columbia Lot
• City Hall Lot
• Mt. Hood RR
• East Lot
• Other?

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• Columbia Lot site

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• Preliminary Estimates

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• Funding Options
• Increase Permit Rates
• Increase Meter Pass Rate
• Special Levy for City Improvements
• Increase Meter Rates
• Urban Renewal

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Parking Plan

• Funding Considerations
• Can it be funded?
• Whats the best option for funding?
• City Funded?
• DBA Funded?
• User Funded?
• Combination of City/DBA/Users and what is the ?

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Parking Plan

• Recommendations
• Review UR Plan as funding source
• Direct staff to plan for a new structure over the
  Columbia Lot to include a recommendation on the
  best option for funding
• Increase Permit Rates
• Increase Meter Pass Rate
• Increase Meter Rates
• Direct staff to implement additional parking
  study recommendations immediately or as soon as
  logistically possible
• General sale of lot permits
• Reduce the number of spaces for meter pass permits

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Parking Plan

• Q A
• Discussion

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Parking Plan