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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-02-2020 Public Comment - M. Wickes - Parking Benefit DistrictsParking Below notes are posted by Michael Wickes, 418 N. Wallace, Bozeman, MT. call- 484-319.8630. mail@wickesphoto.com To date, Documents and/or notes shared with: : - Jayda McClendon, NBS. Jtmcclendon@sbgtv.com. 406.595.8453 - NENA newsletter. - Katheryn Houghton, khoughton@dailychronicle.com MW’s letter to NEA newsletter. My position on the proposed parking district (aka Parking Benefit Zone, but should be called the New Taxing District) is, in summary, this process and project is corrupted and should Not be supported. I have read the associated documents and heard city’s position. First, The “Parking Working Group” is made up of the city’s parking director, two of the city’s economic development directors (why? ), and a carefully selected “citizen’s” group, who in no way is representative of the residents’ of the respective neighborhoods Essentially, this is the same parking director who, along with the city council, mayor and city manager, failed to command comprehensive on-site parking for the new residents and construction crews for each of the new building sites, especially multi-living unit structures. Thus, this bleed of parking into residential neighborhoods has been caused by the city officials, who now want the residents, small unit- landlords, and renters to absorb the cost of fixing it. Second, the Parking Planner’s facts, and structure of this plan is so vague, that this could easily make parking for residents even worse. He has no idea what a permit would cost; renters are barred from buying on street parking passes; the scope of an area that could be converted in a parking zone is not clearly identified. Third, here is an example of how this could go very wrong. The city granted Think Tank and their investors a waiver for their required parking on their Cottonwood living unit complex. So, when this units’ new residents, the building employees and construction workers then begin to sprawl around the neighborhood, taking up existing residents’ and established, small business parking, the city could then say there is a parking issue in the North Wallace Ave. "area" and covert the whole area (Church, Broad, Wallace, Lamme to the railroad tracks) into a park district. The city may claim this could never happen, but because the Parking Manger has posted, with the praise of the city council, an income generating potential from parking permits, what is claimed to be a parking district solution could easily be converted in ad hoc taxing district. Then , the residents have to sue the city to be withdrawn from this conversion to a parking district . The city (and its constructions allies) doubly benefits by lessening the parking requirements of new growth, and then can tax residents who need to protect their parking from encroaching new residents, business staff and clients. Fourth, I haven’t even begun to address the many, many concerns with the other details of this program. Remember, renters are excluded from the “right” to buy an on-street parking pass. So, my neighbors (renters) on N. Wallace Ave could be forced to walk a ½ block with their twin babies, just to get to and from their vehicles. These are the same folks that currently are good parking neighbors. The city needs to go back to their drawing board and find another solution to the parking problems they created, and in doing so, protect the parking of the established residents in Bozeman. We should not be charged for parking adjacent to our own houses. My suggestion is to vote NO on this proposal. You can don’t have to give an explanation. MW additional notes The permits would favor residents in downtown’s bordering neighborhoods. City staff have recommended if commissioners approve the zones, - they issue (sell?) one residential permit per house. Or is it free? - Each residence could buy up to two visitor permits. How much? Does the visitor permit owner have the ability to list All of those who may be “visitors?” City said each visitor would have to be logged in to a city site. So, any visitor, guest, etc. has to be logged into the city for every visit. - If the resident of a home, chooses not to buy a permit, then needs one, Or a new owner needs to buy a permit, do these residents have the right to buy a permit, or take back the permit from a secondary (not resident) owner the permit? Meaning to all of the resident have total access (which overrides other secondary permit buyers) to adjacent parking through time. - The city has stated the position that there is chance that a resident could Not buy a permit for adjacent parking to their residence. Renters- The city said that renters would not be included in the permit buying program,, But that others would be: commuters, business owners, employee, etc. This is illegal or unfair. “The new rule would allow commuters to buy permits for the area, though those slots would be limited and priced higher than for those living in the neighborhoods.” City staff say the change to managing parking aligns with a nearly four-year-old plan. In this four-year plan, where is the commitment to requiring all new- multi- living unit builds to “house” all of their parking needs. The city’s own information document for the parking district posted a long list of questions and concerns. This list, along with the concerns posted by the public and the press, have gone almost completely unanswered, with the city officials (elected and staff) seemingly dismissing their responsibility to their position and the pubic to first answer these questions. According to the draft document, the parking commissioner would notify people living within the proposed zone before it’s created. A petition signed by 60% of property owners within the proposed area could initiate the process to create, change or dissolve the zone. The parking manager never designated the scale or the size of a potential zone. And the city council has the right to override the residents’ vote. The parking manager kept noting how this parking project could generate revenue for the city. This clearly designates that there is an alternative advantage for the city that will determine how it is managed. He suggested that the finds (post administrative) “might go back to the actual neighborhood where the parking permit are issued, for some sort of improvement, then he pretty much backed off of this promise. Construction parking need is to be contained on construction site, not giving up public parking. All multi resident units, injected into or near single family neighborhoods should be mandated to provide parking for all their residents, at their cost. The city then needs to find a fix the parking that it did not require, The parking manager said that enacting this program would Not call for any administrative or enforcement growth (e.g. hiring). Other cities’ (San Anselmo, Ca, Devon, Pa, Philadelphia, Pa, Newark, De, Wilmington, De) managers have noted that these are complicated programs to administer and of course call for additional hiring, enforcement , and citation management personal, which in turn calls for more hiring more staff. - Some parking permits would be “time limited” which call for special enforcement and managing. Of course, this will be expensive to manage. Sunday Bozeman Chronicle “There aren’t specific zones outlined yet. As drafted, the Bozeman Parking Commission could make, change or dissolve zones within the district. That would widen the parking commission’s oversight beyond downtown’s core by roughly 1,000 feet in all directions.” T - Note- This is not true, The new parking district is huge. See district map proposed. “Small business owners have questioned how the zone would impact their work and employees.” - Note- small business owners should be responsible for keeping their employees out of residential neighborhoods and supplying them with “public” parking downtown or in employee parking lots, paid for by the downtown business owners. “The second change would make it illegal for people to park in a zone any time of day as opposed to enforcement of the zones from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. - Note- what does this mean? “One of those changes limits each household in a zone to buy at most two residential parking permits. That scales back an earlier version that allowed every driver in a house to buy a residential permit.” - Note, the operative work here is “allowed.” The city should see that residential parking as a right, not a privilege. This is the same wording attached to public lands grazing. The City Plan for Parking District , pulled from related website RE: Proposed Parking Benefit Zone Ordinance/Resolution - Concerns, Comments and Recommendations On-Street Parking can have a big impact on the quality of life in neighborhoods. Vehicles circling looking for parking places can increase congestion and create a safety hazard for pedestrians and bikers. Conflicts between commuters and residents, including noise and other impacts from non-resident parked cars, challenge the livability and character of a neighborhood. One approach to reduce these challenges is to create parking districts. INC created a Parking Working Group last fall to look at current and proposed parking district policies affecting neighborhoods. The initial focus has been on the proposed new Parking Benefit Zone Ordinance/Resolution (PBZone) north and south of Bozeman’s Historic Main street. The parking Working Group members are from 5 Neighborhood Assocs that are currently in a Parking District or would be affected by a new PBZone: They include Bogert Park (BPNA) and Cooper Park (CPNA) , North East (NENA), South Central (SCAN) and University (UNA). The Working Group met in Nov and Dec and drafted comments, concerns and recommendations for INC to review and discuss at their Jan 9, 2020 meeting. The attached letter to the City Commission is the result of INC’s discussion. INC asks the City Commission to consider these recommendations as they review the proposed Parking Benefit Zone Ordinance and Resolution (within Downtown Parking Management District). Managing parking downtown is a challenge for businesses, visitors and neighborhoods. Wise decisions can help protect neighborhood quality of life and keep downtown vibrant. Inter-neighborhood Council Jennifer Rockne, Chair South Central Assoc of Neighbors (SCAN) Kathy Powell, VP University Neighbors Assoc. (UNA) Bob Wall, Secretary South East Neighborhood Assoc (SENA) Linda Semones/Alison Udall Bogert Park Neighborhood Assoc (BPNA) Cynthia Evans Bozeman Creek Neighborhood Assoc. (BCNA) Lisa Prugh Cooper Park Neighborhood Assoc. (CPNA) David Steinmuller Knolls Neighborhood Assoc (KNA) Laurie McKinney MarWyn Lindley Neighborhood Assoc (MarLin) Suzanne Held Northeast Neighborhood Assoc (NENA) Joe Genovese New Hyalite View (NHVN) Members of INC Parking Working Group Linda Semones and Hannah Gullickson (BPNA) Lisa Prugh (CPNA) Paul House (NENA) Jon Wirth, Doug Clinger and Brandon Whitehead (SCAN) Susan Hinkins & Kathy Powell (UNA) January 17, 2020 To: Bozeman City Commission Brit Fontenot, City Economic Development Director Bozeman Parking Commission and Ed Meece, City Parking Program Manager From: Inter Neighborhood Council (INC) RE: Proposed Parking Benefit Zones Ordinance/Resolution - Concerns, Comments and Recommendations The current Residential Parking Permit Districts (RPPD), near MSU and Bozeman High School, work well by limiting daytime parking on weekdays to residents and businesses within the RPPDs. This has helped reduce congestion from cars circling streets to find a parking spot and helped reduce traffic hazards for pedestrians and bikers. Reduction in noise, conflicts between commuters and residents, litter and other impacts have improved neighborhood livability and character. RPPDs are also helpful in Missoula, Ann Arbor MI, San Francisco, Annapolis MD, Alexandria VA, Boulder CO and many other cities. As we understand it, the proposed new Parking Benefit Zone(s) (PBZone) would be within the proposed Downtown Parking Management District with the goal to maximize on-street parking within a neighborhood impacted by large nearby commercial attractions. The primary permits would be for residents and businesses within a PBZone. Unlike an RPPD, this new parking zone would also include (where possible) non-resident parking permits and time limited parking to facilitate visitor parking turnover. The Benefit would be that funds left over from operating the PBZone could go back to the neighborhood for sidewalks, benches, landscaping, etc. PBZones may help reduce congestion around downtown’s Historic Main Street District; however, INC has some concerns, comments and recommendations regarding this new type of parking zone and its impact on nearby neighborhoods. INC Concerns, Comments and Recommendations about Parking Benefit Zones 1. Objectives and notification process Proposed Objectives are a good way to evaluate a PBZone over time. Has it given primary attention to residents, has it relieved congestion, promoted tranquility between commuters and residents, reduced traffic hazards and reduced litter? However, one objective states that there is NO guarantee residents could park by their home or anywhere in a PBZone. Anywhere, even if you paid for a residential permit? What about the 92-yr-old who has no driveway and must park on the street? What about handicapped residents, families with small children, non-resident volunteers at schools with limited on-site parking, etc.? Accommodations need to be made for these kinds of situations in a PBZone. Proposed Notification and outreach to property owners and businesses in a PBZone align well with the first point of the City’s Strategic Plan – public outreach. Notification is important when initiating creation, modifying or dissolving a PBZ by postcard, social media, signs or other means in the affected neighborhood. This outreach should also include taking a poll of property owners and businesses for support or opposition to any changes. 2. Ask for more details about how a PBZ would operate. Effectiveness depends on how well a PBZ is created, managed and enforced. INC encourages the City Commission to ask: a) Does the Parking Commission and Parking Services Div have data for days and evenings to justify the need for a PBZone? Does a proposed PBZone have 85% occupancy with 25% being non-residents? How would 25% non-residents be measured, especially when some vehicle registration addresses are not current? b) What is the definition of 85% occupancy, how is it measured and how would it be used? INC recommends the 85% occupancy definition be included in any ordinance. c) What is estimated cost of creating and enforcing a PBZone? What is the cost structure to reveal when profits will flow to neighborhoods as a benefit? d) Is there a minimum size of a PBZone? e) Does Parking Services Div have enough staff to monitor and enforce PBZones, especially for time-limited parking? INC recommends requiring an enforcement impact report be done to discuss the ability to enforce parking controls as some other cities do for PBDistricts. f) What method and how often would Parking Services Div adjust number of available non-resident permits and time-limited spaces? 3. Final authority to create, modify or dissolve all or part of a PBZone Who decides? The proposed Ordinance states the Parking Commission would initiate creation, modification or dissolution of a PBZ, set boundaries, hold a public hearing and make the final decision. The commissioners work hard, but they are appointed and advisory to the City Commission. INC and many people in neighborhoods north and south of downtown strongly recommend that the elected City Commissioners decide if a PBZ is created, modified or dissolved , including setting boundaries. The Parking Commission and Parking Services Div can certainly recommend boundaries, set permit costs and enforcement hours and the like but the City Commission should make the final decision on a PBZone. The Ordinance (not the current proposed resolution) should also state that 60% of property owners can sign a petition to initiate creation, modification or dissolution of a PBZone with the City Commission making the final decision. 4. Impact of High-Density Residential Buildings on On-Street Parking Neighborhoods around downtown have been mostly single family residential for over 100 years. High-density residential buildings increase the parking load in a non-proportional way. There is a need to control and balance vehicles from high- density residential buildings to prevent displacement of existing residential parking, including historic residences without dedicated off-street parking. High Density Residential Buildings were required by the City to provide on-site parking for their units based on 1-1.25 cars/unit. Some units are 1, 2 or 3 bedroom and some people may have 0, 1 or 2+ vehicles. If the numerous High-Density residential buildings downtown have some dwelling units with 2+ cars, there could be 80-100 more cars than can be managed on-site. These cars would need on- street parking. This would compete with houses, duplexes and small apts groups in neighborhoods. It would also reduce the non-resident and time-limited parking opportunities – two goals of a PBZone. On-Street parking near High Density Buildings would also be in high demand because they are closer to downtown. INC recommends that if High Density Residential Buildings are: • Inside the boundaries of a PBZone, sale of residential Permits should be limited in number • Outside of a PBZone, permits would automatically be limited, because residents would only be eligible for non-resident permits. 5. Other Opportunities to Reduce Demand for On-Street Parking The City should actively work with businesses, community groups and non-profits to establish additional programs to help manage parking downtown and take the pressure off surrounding neighborhoods. Work on: --Park & Ride at edges of Bozeman in conjunction with available parking lots --Shuttle for downtown employees in the Triangle with Cannery District and N 7th --Additional Streamline bus routes around the city --Shared parking with business lots --Main Street changing to 3 lanes with angle parking --More bike lanes 6. Event Parking Needs Careful Attention within a PBZone Parking must be managed in PBzones around civic establishments such as Willson School, the Emerson Center for Arts and Culture, Bogert Park Farmer’s Market, and other venues (such as the new ELM building on N 7th) so as not to hurt the city’s vibrant event culture.