HomeMy WebLinkAbout09-30-22 Public Comment - E. Webb - On-Street Parking AssessmentFrom:Cyndy Andrus
To:Agenda
Subject:Fwd: [SENDER UNVERIFIED]On-Street Parking Assessment
Date:Friday, September 30, 2022 5:25:44 PM
Cynthia Andrus|Mayor
City of BozemanP:406.582.2383|E:candrus@bozeman.net|W: www.bozeman.net
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From: Cyndy Andrus <CAndrus@bozeman.net>Date: September 30, 2022 at 5:24:41 PM MDTTo: Terry Cunningham <TCunningham@bozeman.net>, Jennifer Madgic<jmadgic@bozeman.net>, I-Ho Pomeroy <IPomeroy@bozeman.net>,
Christopher Coburn <ccoburn@bozeman.net>Cc: Jeff Mihelich <jmihelich@bozeman.net>, Mike Veselik
<mveselik@bozeman.net>, Brit Fontenot <bfontenot@bozeman.net>Subject: Fwd: [SENDER UNVERIFIED]On-Street Parking Assessment
Cynthia Andrus|Mayor
City of BozemanP:406.582.2383|E:candrus@bozeman.net|W: www.bozeman.net
Begin forwarded message:
From: Emily Webb <emily@dock.bot>Date: September 30, 2022 at 5:21:18 PM MDTTo: Cyndy Andrus <CAndrus@bozeman.net>Subject: [SENDER UNVERIFIED]On-Street ParkingAssessment
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Commissioner Andrus:
Thank you for the opportunity to speak at The City Commission meeting
this past Tuesday to convey the concerns of Bozeman citizens and
downtown business owners regarding on-street paid parking.
Please find a summary of our findings HERE. Our scope of work centered
around elements of the on-street paid parking issue that, in our view,
were not being pursued, in part or in whole, by the efforts of City Staff.
Specifically, we focused on the following areas:
1. Public Engagement: Downtown district stakeholder and patron
opinion of on-street paid parking implementation;
2. Funding Parking Supply: Alternative funding sources for addressing
the need to add more supply to the downtown district;
3. Work Plan Audit: Analyzing work related to on-street paid parking
performed by both City-retained consultants and City Staff.
The objective of this scope of work was to provide complete information
to the Commission and the community, at large, as this strategically
important matter was pursued. We encourage you to receive this
information in the spirit of collaboration and community-minded
commitment which it is conveyed. Further, we respectfully ask that you
use this data to augment, and, in some cases, to more completely edify
your understanding beyond what the City Staff and their retained
consultants provided. As much, we hope you benefit from the results of
extensive pursuit of stakeholders and general public opinion which starkly
contrasts from what was gathered from City Staff efforts.
We believe there is an optimized approach to adding supply to a robust
and vibrant downtown corridor that needs more parking. From our work,
we have determined that implementing an on-street paid parking system
is not optimized for addressing the need of adding parking supply and that
a number of superior options exist, which should be pursued in
preference to an on-street paid parking system.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out with questions, requests for additional
information, or to engage us further in the discussion. At the heart of our
effort is an over-riding interest to bring the best solutions to our
community.
Thank you for your kind consideration.
Emily Webb
CEO
www.dock.bot
www.chat-pay.com
From:Emily Webb
To:Mike Maas
Cc:Jeff Mihelich; Taylor Chambers; Cyndy Andrus; Mike Veselik
Subject:[SENDER UNVERIFIED]On-Street Parking Assessment
Date:Monday, October 3, 2022 9:39:17 AM
Attachments:Bozeman Parking On-Street Parking Assessment.pdf
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Good morning!
Thank you for the opportunity to speak at The City Commission meeting last week to convey the
concerns of Bozeman citizens and Downtown business owners regarding on-street paid parking.
Attached, please find our assessment that was promoted by locals who encourage the Commission
to make informed decisions with the most accurate and complete data possible. We hope you
review this analysis and would like to emphasize that collaboration is at the forefront of our efforts
to develop community-minded solutions for the public and private sector as Downtown continues to
undergo exponential growth.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions, requests for information or to explore
opportunities to build a cohesive, long-term transportation strategy driven by data and community
engagement.
Kind regards,
Emily
From: Mike Maas <MMaas@BOZEMAN.NET>
Date: Monday, October 3, 2022 at 8:54 AM
To: emily@dock.bot <emily@dock.bot>
Cc: Jeff Mihelich <jmihelich@BOZEMAN.NET>, Taylor Chambers
<tchambers@BOZEMAN.NET>, Cyndy Andrus <CAndrus@BOZEMAN.NET>
Subject: On-street Parking Assessment availability
Good morning,
For our retention purposes, we are unable to access the document that has been linked. We were
able to access it via the second link sent, but I am unable to save a PDF of the document.
Can you please send a PDF version that we can save in our Laserfiche for public access, and that is
the method we distribute comments and correspondence to the City Commission and staff.
Thank you,
Mike Maas, MPA| City Clerk
City of Bozeman | 121 N. Rouse Ave. | Bozeman, MT 59715
D: 406.582.2321 | C: 406.599.0804
Pronouns: he/him/his
www.bozeman.net
pg. 1
As a local once said:
“One of the highest priorities was the people wanted to preserve the sense of
place and belonging,” Kaveney said. “What’s happening is I think they’re
being alienated by the city commission and no longer feeling like the sense
of place is being protected, and they don’t feel a sense of belonging
anymore.”
Bozeman, a renowned destination and known amongst visitors and locals to be a magical environment
full of positive experiences, is cherished by all who love nature and a culture that exudes the past. Within
those experiences for locals and visitors alike, lies transportation and parking; a subliminal but necessary
daily chore that most would prefer to not be bothered with. When people choose to visit Downtown
Bozeman, they do so because positive memories are correlated to the Downtown experience, inclusive of
– free paid street parking.
Another local says “Paid parking killed the downtown in Louisville, KY where I grew up. In the 1950s
the parking was free on street then it was gone. People flocked to the 1960s style strip malls instead.” –
Ms. Arnot, Nextdoor public comment.
Our goal is to provide alternative solutions for the City of Bozeman’s consideration, specifically
regarding on-street paid parking, through this preliminary assessment. In addition, multiple discrepancies
have been identified in the process of bringing on-street paid parking to the City Commission to vote,
inclusive of the lack of short term and long-term (approved) strategies for supply and demand
management. A second parking garage is in favor by most, however alternative funding for this structure
would maintain the integrity of the consumer experience and the historical preservation of real estate
assets in Downtown Bozeman. We propose creative and well thought out concepts to support the increase
of parking supply while making the case that on-street paid parking is not the solution, and certainly, not
the best solution according to the locals perspective – and the peoples voices is all that should matter.
After conducting an analysis of “City of Bozeman Preliminary Parking Proforma” and “Downtown
Bozeman Parking Study: Parking Assessment and Next Steps” by Walker Consultants, Downtown Urban
renewal District Board Minutes, City Memorandums and Work Sessions, Commission Resolution No.
4582, Downtown Urban Renewal District FY2023 Work Plan and Budget, Transportation Advisory
Board Work Session Jan 26, 2022 and The Parking Management Engagement Handbook, the most
conclusive findings that are conveyed throughout these documents are 1) the importance and dedication to
community engagement and 2) using the” 85% Rule” to justify implementing on-street paid parking to
manage demand, and, to help fund the development of a second parking garage. The most pronounced
discrepancies found were both lack of community engagement when considering a population of roughly
53,000 people and lack of data points to reasonably support demand management as a solution.
In addition to the evaluation of the above documents, the strategies which I used to conduct my own
assessment of parking supply and demand management were: manual space count of on-street parking for
all areas within the 2 hour free parking zones utilizing a step count equivalent to 20 FT long (a
conservative and typical length of a parking space), community surveys, existing supply analysis,
financial projections for all on-street and off street paid parking and enforced parking scenarios, multiple
trips to Bozeman during summer and fall months to capture first hand evidence of parking occupancy and
traffic behavior, exterior PPP resources and examples, and lastly, one on one interactions with locals to
better understand the true nature of the parking environment for those who are embedded in the daily
transportation culture of Downtown Bozeman. The takeaway was that some employees have a difficult
time finding parking, and that public and private parking inventory is being completely taken advantage
of with little structure around its ecosystem.
pg. 2
SECTION I. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT – SURVEY RESULTS
One of the most concerning results from these community surveys are the majority of participants who
cited that they would visit Downtown less if on-street paid parking were implemented. This is a
detrimental statistic for all businesses and a data point which we hope to defer indefinitely. Patrons and
their positive experiences are the sole reason for a thriving Downtown economy, making it imperative to
cater to this revenue source through consumer retention.
96%
4%
Are you a local or a tourist? (388 Total Responses)
Local (374)Tourist (14)
14%
77%
9%
Do you support on-street paid parking in Downtown
Bozeman? (388 Total responsees)
YES (54)NO (300)Maybe (34)
SURVEY 1
pg. 3
77%
2%
21%
If you had to pay for on-street parking, would
you visit Downtown more or less? (220 Total
Responses)
Less (170)More (3)No Impact (47)
82%
11%
7%
If you had to pay for parking would it
discourage you from visiting downtown? (122
Total Responses)
Yes (100)No (14)Maybe (8)
49%
44%
7%
If you had to pay for parking would you visit
downtown as frequently? (45 Total Responses)
Yes (22)No (20)Maybe (3)
pg. 4
SURVEY 2
pg. 5
SECTION II: AUDIT OF DOCUMENTS & PARKING SPACE COUNT
I. DISCREPENCIES
The City failed to abide by Resolution No. 4852, as all 5 of their
working sessions on Supply and Demand Management lacked
community engagement with only 67 participants involved, out of a
population of roughly 53,000 people who may not be aware that the
City is planning to vote on on-street paid parking in Downtown. That
is a .1264% inclusion of the population. How these participants came
to be involved is unknown, because there is no resource found in
which the City had issued a request for participants to engage in these
working sessions. Given that the Bozeman Strategic Plan covers
Business Growth (in accordance with the Economic Development
Plan) and Infrastructure Investments, we can assume that Supply and
Demand Management falls under this Resolution.
City of Bozeman Preliminary Parking Proforma, Walker Consultants: This proforma is
inconsistent in the number of parking spaces referenced in comparison to the inventory identified
in “Parking Assessments and Next Steps”. For instance, “Parking Assessments and Next Steps”
states “781 parking spaces were within the Downtown “Core Downtown Area,” defined as the
area bounded by 5th Avenue, Babcock Street, Mendenhall Street, and Wallace Avenue” while
the Proforma states: “Using the results of the 2021 Study, the Downtown Core has been
identified for consideration of paid parking in this preliminary revenue modeling effort. As
shown in Figure 1, this area comprises 704 on-street spaces.” If both sources are in fact
pg. 6
referencing on-street parking inventory within the Core Downtown Area, there is a discrepancy
of 77 spaces. However, the proforma does not reference a count of on-street inventory,
occupancy, or turnover rates to project revenues. The strategy in which Walker projected
monthly revenues was via “parking transaction volumes using observed parking demands for a
typical August weekday and Saturday, and historical bed tax and enplanement data provided by
the City”. More so, “monthly factors were created based on the six-year average reflecting 2016
through November 2021, not including March through May 2020. To confirm potential impacts
of pandemic behaviors did not disproportionately skew the results, the three-year average of
2019 to 2021 was compared to these monthly factors and their projected trends through 2021.”
How does a six-year average, and another three-year average of past financial performance
accrued from transaction volumes that have no correlation or relevance to on-street parking
revenue potential hold logic? The projections for Meter Violations and Citations do not reference
inventory or parking sessions, creating a vague assumption for revenues based off of a 15%
violator rate, with no mention of how exactly many violators makes up this 15%. The next
financial projection outlines Parking Permits, which is a bit of an outlier when composing
projections for on-street paid parking in the Core Downtown Area because it has been referenced
in both studies that parking permits will either be applied to Parking Benefits Zones or offered in
the Bridger Garage and/or the open surface flat lots. The matter at hand should focus solely on
financial projections for on-street paid parking to fully grasp the potential or lack thereof, of the
net operating income that would potentially be used to contribute to the development of a second
municipal parking garage. The financial projections derived from our assessment utilized the
781-space count from Walker’s “Parking Assessment and Next Steps” and applied a 77%
occupancy rate based on the average of all occupancy data collected in this report. Our year-
round projections take into consideration an 8-month peak season and 4 month shoulder season
with a 3X turnover rate in peak season, with variable rates of $1 and $1.75 for comparative
purposes to “cost recovery” and “cost recovery plus” in Walker’s proforma. Using the same
inventory, occupancy, and turnover count, we applied this formula to Walker’s seasonal
suggestion of only charging for on-street paid parking for a 5-month summer peak season to gain
as many data points as possible for evaluation of conservative and aggressive assumptions.
Our year round proforma at $1/HR could result in gross revenues of $649,479 compared to a 5-
month peak season of $360,822. Regardless of the revenues, expenses will most likely increase
from unknown variables, exact amount of the debt service for the new garage is unknown, and
allocation of these funds are being heavily considered for multiple options including but not
exclusive to: more transit, bike and pedestrian transportation options, an employee permit
program, an employee parking program, operations and maintenance of public parking programs.
Our assessment has been unable to identify any mention of an Ordinance that would assure that
net operating income would be allocated to such projects, or solely utilized within the B-3
District. And now, bonding the pro forma generated by Walker Consultants is under
consideration to bridge the $7.5 million needed to meet the $16.5 million dollar project, when
two vital factors have not been determined in this proforma: will on-street paid parking include 2
hours free, and if so, projections will need to be calculated based on a 5% occupancy of vehicles
that staid longer than two hours, according to Walker’s “Parking Assessment and Next
Steps.” Can on-street paid parking net operating income solely prove as a funding mechanism
for a second garage, or not?
pg. 7
Bozeman Parking Proforma – Year Round
Bozeman Parking Proforma utilizing Walker’s 5-month peak season assumptions
City of Bozeman Proforma – How are on-street seasonal parking projections calculated?
pg. 8
a. Downtown Bozeman Parking Study: Parking Assessments and Next Steps, Walker
Consultants: One major overlooked aspect of the occupancy percentages that were outlined
in this Study to explain both on-street and off-street parking separately and collectively, are
that an average occupancy is rarely considered. The narrative to justify the “85% Rule”
builds around the fact that the one weekday afternoon and one weekend afternoon had peak
occupancies of 85% and above, albeit with conflicting data. For instance, within the
Weekday Parking Occupancy section, it states: “The Core Downtown Area reached 85%
occupied” and then “…2-hour street parking in the Core Downtown Area reaching 95%” and
then “during this time 2-hour parking in the Core Downtown Area was higher than the
aggregated study area at 86%” (Walker, pg. 7,8,9). In the Saturday Parking Occupancy
section, it states: “Core Downtown Area occupancy decreased to 75% in the evening” and
then “during this time 2-Hour parking in the Core Downtown Area remained high at 93%.”
Not only are there multiple references to occupancy within the same area, but the 2-hour
parking zones are in fact The Core Downtown Area. To note an additional discrepancy in the
Saturday Parking Occupancy section, there is a data point missing in comparison to the
Weekday Parking Occupancy section, that being: “The overall system, including both on-
street and off-street facilities.”
Diagram 1 below outlines every occupancy reference and Diagram 2 calculates the average
percentage (excluding “overall” percentages) to provide a less skewed data point specifically
pertaining to the occupancy rates within the Study Area during the two-day analysis.
DIAGRAM 1
DIAGRAM 2
pg. 9
Secondly, a vital statistical discrepancy can be considered from the sheer fact that these
occupancy findings by Walker Consultants are skewed due to lack of data points and that results
are based on a 2-day observation period during peak season, and, a boomerang year from a
global shut down in which S&P Global stated on May 25, 2021 “global real GDP is projected to
surge 5.7% in 2021, its strongest advance since 1973” (Johnson, Sara. May 25.2021). A weekday
and a weekend day were selected in August of 2021 to analyze on-street and off-street parking
trends and behaviors, and this analysis is now the basis generalized claim of the 85% Rule being
applicable to Downtown Bozeman. It would be wise to devise a strategy that tracks, collects and
analyzes occupancy over a long-term period to better understand the exact traffic patterns and
logistics of Downtown Bozeman, and then compare this data to “Downtown Bozeman Parking
Study: Parking Assessments and Next Steps” to assure that the city has access to accurate
parking data before voting to implement paid on-street parking within the B-3 District.
“Section 03 Parking Turnover & Length of Stay” can be questioned on the accuracy of data
collection tactics, as the study mentions utilizing mobile LPR technology in combination with a
digital space assessment. Is this mobile LPR occupancy collection data available for the public to
review? This mobile LPR collected on-street license plate data and processed it to output “length
of stay” data – are the details of this data available for the public to review? Although this
section emphasizes the need for turnover due to high occupancy, it is noted that the average
length of stay for both on-street and off-street parking on a weekday and a weekend day is below
2-hours. It is then noted that most parkers don’t stay longer than 2 hours. “Along Main Street,
within the Core Downtown Area, 95% stayed less than two hours” (Walker, pg. 15). If this is the
case, what is the logical argument for needing to manage demand in the Core Downtown Area?
Another factor that was not considered in the “Parking Turnover and Length of Stay” study is the
number of monthly permits issued for each garage, open surface flat lots and Parking Benefits
Zone. We can assume that if permits were accounted for when considering long term on-street
parking accessibility within the Study Area, this would increase the turnover rate above 95%
because this low turnover occupancy rate would be excluded from the data.
Parking Management Engagement: This Bozeman Parking Handbook, prepared by Bridge
Economic Development and RWC, “will facilitate decisions for future parking management
policies that will help achieve the desired values for the community.” It is important to highlight
some of the “Guiding Principles” within this Handbook that pertain to parking and the concerns
one might have about the execution, or lack thereof, of these principles. To begin, one Guiding
Principle states: “City will ensure adequate parking for residents and guests in neighborhoods.” It
is curious as to why Parking Benefit Zones have been approved, particularly for commuter’s
utilization, when this Guiding Principle ensures adequate parking for residents and guests. Have
residents had the opportunity to provide feedback on whether or not on-street parking inventory
is adequate for themselves and their guests after Parking Benefit Zones were implemented? More
so, was occupancy data collected prior to and post the implementation of Parking Benefit Zones,
in order for the city to have the necessary data to evaluate whether or not paid permits in
residential neighborhoods is resulting excessive demand and therefore squeezing the limited
available inventory that should be prioritized for residents? Did Walker Consultants occupancy
data consider the permits allowed in these zones while collecting and analyzing occupancy data?
pg. 10
Note* City of Bozeman’s landing page for Parking Benefit Zones states:
“Briefly stated, PBZ’s restrict on-street parking to
residences/businesses within the zone through use of a permit system.
However, commuter parkers may also purchase a limited number of
on-street parking permits -- depending on the actual
occupancy/inventory of vehicles parking in the zone.”
This poses a question: Why would Walker Consultants take into account the “remainder area” of
on-street parking space within the B-3 District (outside the Core Downtown Area) for number of
parking spaces, occupancy and length of stay methodologies when these zones are solely
dedicated for residents, guests and local permits? This data points skews the financial projections
if in fact these spaces will not be heavily considered for public parking purposes.
The second Guiding Principle in which a discrepancy is found is: “City will ensure adequate
parking for customers and visitors downtown….The city will preserve the most convenient on-
street parking for priority users; the short-term trip (downtown).” This Guiding Principle is
prioritizing the supply and convenience of on-street parking for customers and visitors, which
many Downtown Business owners strongly support. Given the community feedback from
surveys, it would be an accurate assumption to say that the consensus of the local community
would prioritize this Guiding Principle as well. And yet, paid on-street parking will result in the
opposite effect, causing a greater inconvenience to park with an unnecessary approach to supply
and demand management. For instance, Walker Consultants Occupancy Study concluded that the
Core Downtown Area has a 95% turnover rate for 2-hour parking, meaning that there is in fact
no supply or demand management system needed within this area since on-street parking supply
is finite, and demand is being organically managed by the 2-hour regulations and parkers abiding
to those regulations.
Lastly, “Private sector (developers and employers) is primarily responsible for providing
employee parking…. As the city transitions away from providing parking for private sector
employees, the city may participate in shared parking agreements with private sector businesses
to provide employee parking when fiscally and operationally reasonable.” Having collected
firsthand evidence of two business owners with some of the largest supply of parking space in
the Core Downtown Area who are “donating” their parking spots during after-hours and on
weekends, a successful execution of a working model for employee parking has yet to be brought
to life. Is there any progress on the shared parking agreements between the City and business
owners and the stipulations around these terms that have been developed which can be shared
with the public for community engagement? Have Downtown establishments with zero
employee parking spaces been identified as possible ‘candidates’ for this program? Is there data
on how many employees work for each establishment in order to map out equitable terms
amongst business owners? How does the City plan to organize this system, enforce it, and
engage both business owners and their employees?
a. Contradictory reports, both published in 2021: Parking Management Engagement
Handbook vs. Walker Consultants whereas the Handbook seems to convey the
pg. 11
preservation of Bozeman and prioritizing the community engagement through its Guiding
Principles (which seem to be neglected) compared to Walker Consultants Study which
emphasizes the need prove the “85% Rule” for the justification of on-street paid parking
and barely takes into account the overall documentation of Strategies, Ordinances,
Resolutions and Plans to maintain the integrity of the long term vision for the City of
Bozeman.
b. Commission Resolution No. 4852
i. “WHEREAS, the City of Bozeman recognizes the value of establishing a
community-wide plan that can guide future policy and funding decisions;
ii. WHEREAS, considerable efforts have been made to develop a Strategic
Plan that includes a vision, strategies, and action items that are based upon
an input from a wide cross-section of the community;”
iii. An Engaged Community 1.1 Outreach
a. City Communication Plan and Protocol. Develop, implement and
train for, a City-wide communications protocol and outreach plan.
b. Dramatically increase transparency and create access to all City
documents.
Based on Resolution 4852 in combination with Memo’s from working sessions, there appears to
be a lack of community-wide engagement and that the Bozeman Strategic Plan is not being
abided to, as roughly 100-200 people have participated when these documents encourage “an
input from a wide cross-section of the community.” Regarding Outreach in Resolution 4852, has
a city-wide communications protocol and outreach plan been executed, considering the low
number of participants? What progress has been made on increasing transparency to all city
documents? Are city financials accessible to the public, specifically concerning the money that
the Urban Renewal District provided to the City of Bozeman for open surface flat lot
beautification, but then these funds were not allocated for this use and were not returned to the
URD.
b. Urban Renewal District
i. Downtown URD Mission Statement #3
“The Facilitation of private/public partnerships is encouraged in the
implementation of the Plan”
One of the goals of this assessment is to propose alternative solutions for Public Private
Partnerships for the building of a second garage. Since a PPP is encouraged by the URD in their
mission statement, it would benefit the community to pursue this mission in lieu of an on-street
paid parking program to better understand the community’s outlook and how they can help
develop a collaborative vision forward for the Downtown Bozeman parking ecosystem.
ii. Downtown Urban Renewal District FY2023 Work Plan and Budget
1. Wayfinding and Parking Signage Project ($25,000) – Since this is
ranked as a top project, it is important to note that installation and
fabrication of wayfinding signage is likely to be more costly and in
the range of $100,000+ based on a 4-level garage. Is a vendor
proposal available to the public for review?
pg. 12
2. Streetscape Preliminary Engineering ($50,000) – Has any
consideration for this budget been considered for the potential cost
and installation of hardware and signage for on-street paid
parking?
II. CONCERNS AND QUESTIONS ON MEMOS
a. URD Board Meeting Minutes June 21, 2022
“There were several homework items they were instructed to
accomplish before bringing back to the commission. Including more
data on an employee parking program, an MOU for a garage 2.0 site,
more public engagement and more financial information on
infrastructure needs. Most of their work has taken place and we
expect they will return to the commission towards end of summer.
DBP staff will be ready to engage all the DBP boards on next steps
for our involvement and input. Board members seem generally
supportive of creating a resolution document for the Commission to
consider in order to support the paid parking program ordinance.”
The concern with the above statement is that there still to date has not been extensive community
engagement conducted on behalf of the city, as 2022 Minutes and Memo’s indicate that under
200 people have been involved in having a voice throughout these working sessions.
Additionally, there has been no release of documentation on financial information on
infrastructure needs, only that the garage will cost $16.5 million dollars, however there is no
breakdown of these costs available to the public. Can we request that a financial breakdown of
the parking garage is issued prior to creating a resolution? And lastly, where can the resolution
document, or the working resolution document, for the Commission to consider be found?
b. URD Memo September 20, 2022
“The city staff is intending to bring the idea of a Paid Parking Program back
to the Commission as a work session in Sept./Oct. with hopes for their
approval to move forward. There were several homework items they were
instructed to accomplish before bringing back to the commission. Including
more data on an employee parking program, an MOU for a garage 2.0 site,
more public engagement and more financial information on infrastructure
needs.”
It would benefit the Downtown community to have the opportunity to be more involved in the
development of employee parking programs through additional working sessions that
Create executable resolutions and a win-win for all. Transparency on financial information for
infrastructure needs would also greatly build trust within the private sector.
Transparency on who attended the July 2022 working sessions was not released until the last
week of September 2022, after months of requests for this information.
pg. 13
i. 15-20 participants involved in the working sessions is perceived as a form
of exclusion from the greater community and do not represent the citizens
of Bozeman. Inclusion should be the focus.
ii. How are participants selected to engage?
iii. Is there a request for participation in which the community can opt to
participate in these working sessions?
iv. Is there a cap on the number of people who can attend these sessions?
III. ON-STREET SPACE COUNT
a. Manual vs. Digital: Whereas Walker Consultants utilized a “Geographic
Information Systems data layer that contained estimated on-street parking
inventory, sorted by restriction, for each block face in the Study Area” provided
by the City, our assessment walked 6 miles within the core Downtown area and
manually counted street space.
b. Walker Consultants reported 781 on-street parking spaces within the Downtown
“Core Downtown Area” and our assessment reported 668 spaces from 86/Wallace
to Third Ave. & E. Babcock to Mendenhall – a difference of 113 spaces is in
question.
IV. GRASS ROOTS SURVEY & OUTREACH
a. Local bars and restaurants
b. MSU Student Government outreach
c. In person survey at Downtown bar during Saturday football
d. 3 local Instagram stories shared the survey
e. Real estate agents
f. Post on Nextdoor
A Bozeman local posted a 3-question survey on Nextdoor and what
resulted was a very outspoken community, with a majority of local
participants against paid parking, for various reasons. Commentary can
be found in Appendix A.
g. Google Parking Survey
The survey was taken by 388 participants, with a variation of the third question, to
make certain this question was not phrased in a subjective manner.
V. POST CARD MAILING SURVEY – 141 responses (and counting) to date
a. 5,000 post cards we sent to residents and businesses surrounding Downtown
Bozeman.
SECTION III: PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS AND GRANTS – ALTERNATIVE
FUNDING MECHANISMS
A Public Private Partnership Project to construct the building of a new parking garage would be
the most least intrusive solution for both the community and the City’s operating expenses, while
creating an opportunity to generate unrestricted funds from the garage, as financing would not be
tied to Federal bonds. A multitude of successful projects can be referenced in the National
Development Council’s Public-Private Partnerships Portfolio.
pg. 14
One relevant example in this portfolio is the Riverside County Law Building which includes a
surface parking lot, a portion of which will be covered with “solar powered generation that have
a capacity to provide up to 30% of the buildings anticipated electrical usage” (National
Development Council). Green initiatives that help to reduce expenditures should be considered
for all future infrastructure projects for environmentally sustainable solutions and to contribute to
the development of smart city infrastructure as Bozeman grows from a large town to a small
City.
Also, Seattle, Washington engaged in a PPP for the construction of the Chinook Building, which
includes a “six-story, 817-space detached parking garage. The building is LEED Gold for the
exterior and LEED Platinum for the interior (both certifications are pending). The state-of-the-art
green building techniques include a green roof, a rainwater irrigation system, and high-efficiency
HVAC and energy systems” (National Development Council). These are vital sustainable
components that should be included (if not already) in the architectural blueprint for Downtown
Bozeman’s new parking garage and would attract the interest of private financing as socially
responsible endeavors are favored in both the public and private sector when considering the
long-term financial upside of the ROI.
Smart city infrastructure should be the driving force behind Bozeman’s long term transportation
strategy. Elevated sustainable components for new infrastructure projects are completely viable
with the assistance of private funding, which in a sense, is essentially limitless – as opposed to
being capped out on net operating income potential derived from a finite supply of inventory,
which is then diluted by the various expenditure allocations.
Aside from the National Development Council’s Public-Private Partnership Portfolio, a more
recent PPP to reference as another viable solution for the City of Bozeman is the Concession
Agreement developed for the City of Annapolis, MD. Once completed, the Hillman Garage, will
include more total parking (increasing from 425 to 590 spaces) with elevators, smart
technologies (way finding and parking space detectors), stormwater controls, solar arrays,
electric vehicle charging stations, improved lighting and more.
“Concessionaire shall be responsible for financing (through senior
debt and a subordinate loan) (i) the cost of the work to complete the
design and construction of the Project, (ii) the concession payment to
be made to the City at Financial Close (iii) reimbursement of costs
incurred under the Pre-Development Agreement (“PDA”) between
the City and AMRP, budgeted cost in the PDA for the development of
the City Dock project and payment, and (iv) associated financing and
development cost. Any such debt financing shall be an obligation of
Concessionaire and non-recourse to the City. “
“Upon Financial Close, with the proceeds of the initial disbursement
of the Project's financing, Concessionaire shall pay to the City the
concession payment of approximately $20-$25 million depending on
capital market conditions at time of Financial Close.”
pg. 15
The Hillman Garage Concession Agreement proves that a multi-party interest can collaborate on
the highest standards of parking garage infrastructure, and that private financing infuses the
ability to execute a long-term vision of robust environmental efficiencies’ vs. an underdeveloped
short term plan being rushed for approval for the sake of unrestricted revenue sources, and
therefore neglecting the importance of implementing a sustainable transportation strategy that
would act as the foundation to support future population growth and reduce utility and
operational expenditures for the City of Bozeman.
Federal Grants
i. Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grants
Federal Agency: Department of Transportation
Bureau or Account: Office of the Secretary
Funding Amount: $500,000,000
Funding Mechanism: Competitive Grant
Recipients: (A) A State; (B) a political subdivision of a State; (C) a Tribal government; (D) a
public transit agency or authority; (E) a public toll authority; (F) a metropolitan planning
organization; and (G) a group of 2 or more eligible entities described in any
Eligible Uses:
In general, a Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation grant
may be used to carry out a project that demonstrates at least one of the
following:
i. Coordinate Automation
ii. Connected Vehicles
iii. Intelligent, sensor-based infrastructure
iv. Systems integration
v. Commerce delivery and logistics
vi. Leveraging use of innovative aviation technology
vii. Smart grid
viii. Smart technology traffic signals.
Next Milestone: A notice of Funding Opportunity is expected in the second or third quarter of
2022.
ii. Rebuilding America’s Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) Grant
Program
Federal Agency: Department of Transportation
USDOT will evaluate applications to award based on eight criteria. For each merit criterion,
USDOT will consider whether the benefits are clear, direct, data driven, and significant, which
will result in a rating of “high”, “medium,” “low,” or “nonresponsive”
Eight Merit criterion for RAISE applications include:
▪ Safety
▪ Environmental Sustainability
▪ Quality of Life
▪ Mobility and Community Connectivity
▪ Economic Competitiveness and Opportunity
pg. 16
▪ State of Good Repair
▪ Partnership and Collaboration
▪ Innovation
SECTION IV: ALTERNATIVE REVENUE STREAMS
a. AirBnB of Parking – Passive income for Homeowners and the City can collect
Occupancy Tax from this revenue
b. Pedi Cabs – Downtown transportation option during the Spring, Summer and Fall.
This is a fluid form of transportation that does not require the occupancy of long-
term parking, moves consumers from one end of town to another, and provides
Corporation License Tax to the City
c. Parking Enforcement – Strict parking enforcement can prove to be a lucrative
revenue stream, while creating a much-needed checks and balances system of
morals within the Downtown parking ecosystem. City issued violations hold more
weight than privately issued parking citations and are proven to collect a higher
accounts receivable of 75%-85% compared to the 50%-60% industry standard for
private operators.
i. In Walker Consultants “Downtown Bozeman Parking Study: Parking
Assessments and Next Steps” they say, “In a paid parking context, high
turnover can also help to reduce or eliminate subsidizing costs associated
with managed parking’s operations and maintenance by the General Fund
(property taxes).” However, parking enforcement could prove to be an
effective approach to turnover if the deficiencies in the system were
corrected and evaluated before voting on implementing on-street paid
parking. In another context of turnover, this study states in their “Length of
Stay” section that “along Main Street, within the Core Downtown Area,
95% stayed less than two hours.” This is an incredibly high turnover rate,
without paid parking being implemented, which causes confusion for the
justification of on-street paid parking to begin with. There is no analysis of
why or how on-street paid parking could increase this turnover to 100%
and whether or not 100% is even a viable percentage to attain.
ii. Is “Sec. 36.04.260. - Maximum parking duration designated.” of Bozeman
Municipal Code being enforced? If this code was strictly enforced, it could
prove to be another effective tactic to increase turnover rates and violation
fees.
d. Public Parking open surface flat lots – Create a universal “off street” parking rate
structure, where every lot offers 2 hours of free parking and $1/HR thereafter.
Projections provided in Section V.
e. SID – Although this is a one-time issuance of City revenue, this funding
mechanism should not be overlooked as it may prove to be the least meddlesome
strategy to produce financing for a second garage in a short period of time, while
allowing flexibility for future unrestricted revenue to be generated from the new
garage. In the Transportation Advisory Board’s 9/28/2022 work session
memorandum, it states, “staff is not recommending an SID for several reasons”
and furthermore, “there is a lack of consensus among the downtown community. In
pg. 17
our community engagement sessions in the March and April 2022, participants
were split on whether or not to pursue a SID for the downtown community.” It is
encouraged that the staff’s decision be influenced by the majority vote of
Downtown business owners, but yet a determined consensus amongst this group
has not been identified. Previous community engagement sessions included a small
group of participants compared to the entirety of Downtown business owners.
i. Was the entire Downtown business owners community invited to
participate, or should their input be required in order for the staff to make
informed decisions on a new SID? Conducting a mandatory survey with
Downtown business owners to gather a consensus on whether or not they
approve an SID as a funding mechanism to help build a second garage, in
lieu of on-street paid parking, would provide more data to make more
informed decisions.
f. Rental vehicle sales tax in Bozeman – 75% is deposited to the State General Fund.
Can the city leverage these funds to contribute to the development of a second
parking garage?
g. Paid Bus System – Paid ridership could prove to be a reliable and consistent
revenue stream that would contribute to the development of a long-term strategy
for an intelligent transportation system within and around the B-3 District. A paid
public transit system applied to both one-time riders and long-term subscribers
could generate funds for the city to enhance their current bus transportation
infrastructure with the goal of decreasing parking demand and increasing the use of
public transportation. Based on local employee’s feedback, the bus system could
be more efficient if the wait time was lessened by increasing the fleets on current
routes. If the frequency of buses increased at each bus stop and more routes were
developed around top attractions such as Montana Science Center, Bozeman Public
Library, Museum of the Rockies, etc, it could positively affect the demand for
public transportation ridership. Another strategy to increase ridership would be to
modify the fleets to meet specifications for the elderly and disabled. Additionally,
bus designs should also include a designated stroller area to encourage family
ridership. If modification for families, elderly and the disabled is not possible with
the current fleets, a plan to purchase new fleets that can meet these specifications
would position the City of Bozeman as an all-inclusive, socially equitable
intelligent transportation system, while acting as a demand management strategy
for Downton parking.
h. A rhetorical question to consider: If FY2022 revenues were up by 26% and this
margin is sustained in future fiscal years, how or why would a portion of these
revenues not be budgeted for the construction of a second garage?
pg. 18
SECTION V. PROJECTIONS
i. On-Street Projections: Inventory used for on-street projections is derived from Walker
Consultants Downtown Bozeman Parking Study: Parking Assessment and Next Steps. “There
are approximately 1,702 on-street parking spaces in the Study area (B-3 District)….of these,
about 781 parking spaces were within the Downtown “Core Downtown Area.” Assumptions are
utilizing a 77% occupancy for 781 on-street parking spaces with an 8-month high season and a
3X turnover rate. Annual projected revenue for $1/HR parking is $649,479 and $1,136,589 for
$1.75/HR. If we decrease the 4 months off season rate to a $1/HR and keep the $1.75/HR rate
during high season, the projected revenues are $1,082,466.
pg. 19
ii. Off-Street Projections – Inventory used for off-street projections is derived from Walker
Consultants Downtown Bozeman Parking Study: Parking Assessment and Next Steps. “There
are 612 off-street public parking spaces within the four surface lots.” Revenue was extrapolated
based on the same rate structure applied to Bridger Parking Garage, which is 2-hours free and
$1/HR thereafter with no maximum time. Our calculated average occupancy data used for this
financial forecast is derived from Walker’s ‘Parking Assessment and Next Steps’. Assumptions
convey an annual revenue of $33,584. Details and access to this model can be found HERE.
iii. Enforcement Projections: These conservative parking enforcement projections convey one of
the most profitable revenue streams while capitalizing on existing assets and systems, in
comparison to annual revenue from paid off-street parking, permit parking and paid on-street
parking (with assumptions year-round at $1/HR). Assumptions are utilizing a 77% occupancy for
2314 spaces, inclusive of on-street and off street parking, with an 8 month high season predicting
a 3X turnover rate. Data for turnover was taken from Walker Consultants study, assuming a 94%
turnover for 2-hour off street parking and a 96% turnover for 2-hour on-street parking. 40% of
the remainder parkers are considered violators, which we then assume 85% of these violators
will pay a $30 citation, resulting in an annual projected revenue of $888,947.
pg. 20
iv. Net Operating Income – On an annual basis, results from Walker’s proforma operating
expenses and Bridger Garage revenues were used to calculate a Net Operating Income of
$1,193,083, assuming the inclusion of projections derived from parking enforcement revenue
and off-street parking revenue.
SECTION VI. EMPLOYEE PARKING PROGRAMS
a. Prohibit employees from parking in “Core Downtown” area to alleviate demand
as on-street occupancy was the highest demand category in the Core Downtown
Area during the weekday afternoon at 95%, which is around the time that
establishments begin their evening shifts, roughly around 4pm.
i. Walker Consultants “Downtown Bozeman Parking Study: Parking
Assessments and Next Steps” states: “in a paid parking context, high
turnover can also help to reduce or eliminate subsidizing costs associated
with managed parking’s operations and maintenance by the General Fund
(property taxes).” However, employee parking programs could prove to be
an effective approach to increasing high turnover rates if the city could
execute a 1-year pilot to evaluate the effectiveness of this “system”.
b. Create a subsidized program for Downtown employers to apply for the utilization
of parking space owned by surrounding property owners. This concept would
engage URD to subsidize property owners for the contribution of parking space
for the Downtown employee parking program. This is a strategy to ‘unlock
existing inventory’ while providing an incentive for property owners to offer
some of their parking space inventory to local employers and their employees.
pg. 21
c. Dedicate one off-street parking lot to employee parking only. No “public
parking”. Employees are taking advantage of on-street and off-street parking
space. A way to mitigate and control this behavior would be to establish one open
surface flat lot as strictly employee parking only. Parking enforcement systems
would help to control this model and generate revenue from violators who are not
registered in this “program”.
d. Conduct an analysis to determine exactly which Downtown establishments have
zero employee parking inventory and solve for their needs first
e. Require employees to register their vehicle if they partake in any employee
parking programs to make certain that parking enforcement can be monitored
effectively and accurately
f. Discount employee parking violation fees (if license plate is registered with “city
employee parking program”)
g. The evening shifts in Downtown Bozeman may be causing this occupancy crunch
in the afternoon, on weekdays & weekends. Which Downtown establishments
don’t have the capacity to supply employee parking?
h. Engage federal and government buildings to offer their parking space during
after-hours and weekends. Emphasis on weekends. Would need to be a city
initiative, with registered plates and heavily enforced.
SECTION VII. CONSOLIDATED SOLUTIONS FOR SUPPLY AND DEMAND
MANAGEMENT
I. DEMAND MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES
a. Paid parking in open surface flat lots - apply same pricing structure as the Bridger
Park Garage to create a “universal” 2-hour free parking + paid parking system
b. Strict parking enforcement – violation fees issued and enforced (easier to
establish in a parking lot vs. on-street parking because the plates will be
pg. 22
reconciled more accurately through optimal placement of License Plate
Recognition cameras upon entries and exits)
c. Enhance the city’s parking enforcement systems to create structure, boundaries
and efficiencies around parking behaviors, where abiding by the regulations
becomes the norm and paid parking is strictly enforced after 2 hours
d. Build awareness around encouraging parking enforcement tactics for local
business owners to manage their parking inventory so it is not abused by
violators, and more so, that parking is managed in such a way that the available
inventory is welcoming to patrons and staff
II. SUPPLY MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES
a. Downtown business owners’ employee parking programs – engage business
owners to offer parking spaces to local establishments to utilize for employee
parking, with a stipulation for subsidy from the URD. Employers who cannot
offer employee parking could apply for employee parking subsidy, and then
compensate other local establishments to lease out their available parking spaces
b. Utilize parking space at federal buildings during after-hours or weekends for
employee parking - circled in red below
c. Utilize parking space at churches during off hours – circled in yellow below
d. Loading zones - identify high traffic times of days and days of week to gather
statistics on traffic patterns of delivery vehicles, in which case loading zones
could be used for nightly parking only. Or, even dedicated to “registered”
employee vehicles for hospitality establishments
ie: “5pm – 7am ONLY.2 HR Free Parking. Strict Enforcement of Parking
Regulations.”
e. Allow residents to rent out their driveways
pg. 23
f. Encourage Downtown business owners to offer their parking space as paid public
parking for consumers who are not “tagged” as patrons
g. Require Minimum Parking Requirements WITHOUT exemptions
i. According to Bozeman’s Municipal Code Sec. 38.540.050. -
Number of parking spaces required for Off-Street or Off-Road
Parking Spaces Required: “Hotels/Motels: 1.1 spaces per each guest
room; plus 1 space per employee on maximum shift; plus spaces for
accessory uses as follows…” But yet a clause is embedded in this
Section to give exemptions:
“Adjustments to minimum requirements. To implement the city's
adopted growth policy, adjustment of parking requirements within
certain areas of the city is desired. Use of this section may not be
considered as joint use of parking or off-site parking regulated by
sections 38.540.060 and38.540.070, nor does the use of this section
preclude the use of other sections of this chapter which may have the
effect of reducing the required amount of on-site parking. More than one
adjustment may apply. Multiple adjustments are added together to
modify the minimum required parking from Table 38.540.050-3 in a
single operation. Multiple adjustments are not applied sequentially.”
How does reducing parking space requirements contribute to the city’s adopted growth policy
when the current environment is in dire need of inventory? The primary focus and solution being
considered to solve supply management is to build a second parking garage, utilizing taxpayers’
dollars to fund a portion of the cost, with hesitation to engage in a federal bond, and an
accelerated agenda to vote for on-street paid parking as the next best solution to fund the
remainder costs of development, when the projected net operating income doesn’t prove to meet
the financial needs of the project within the next two years. With little execution of employee
parking programs, additional revenue source creation, PPP efforts and a pending opportunity to
unlock existing supply, it appears as though no long-term supply management forecast is
established for the next 5,10,15 years, causing an “urgent” bottle neck situation where residents,
employees and business owners will have to suffer through the depreciation of the Downtown
culture when and if, on-street paid parking is approved. Had minimum parking requirements
been managed differently, they may not be as much as a supply issued in Downtown Bozeman.
h. Additional Parking Benefit Zones – Not favored by locals, and would not solve all
employee parking demand, as night shifts are disinclined to park further away
from Main Street due to increased homelessness and dark residential streets not
being well lit or monitored by security
i. Fair ground with dedicated transportation system
i. Trolly in summers
ii. Streamline bus route created solely for Main St drop off (“employee
route”)
iii. Create employee incentives to park at fair grounds
j. Stripe on-street parking space dimensions in the Core Downtown Area to
maximize space and unlock ‘new’ inventory
k. Stripe spaces in alleys, if possible
pg. 24
III. DOWNTOWN BUSINESS OWNERS
i. Opt into leasing out extra parking space and joining to become a
“member” of the ‘Employee Parking Subsidy Program’
ii. Unlock space in alleyways to create parallel parking. One way traffic may
be required for this design to work. Can the URD engage an engineer to
map out the practicality of this supply potential?
iii. Work with First Security Bank to create an employee registration process
for parking enforcement. This system will log all approved license plates
with their affiliated parking session durations (shifts) and allocated space
number.
iv. Which Downtown establishments have parking spaces? How many? Do
they allow their employees to park here? Private parking data for every
Downtown establishment should be considered to make data driven
decisions to better understand how and with who to solve employee
parking problems with, as a universal solution doesn’t apply to all.
Develop “space to employee” ratios and prioritize the businesses who are
struggling the most with employee parking.
IV. URBAN RENEWAL DISTRICT
a. Alley Improvements and Planning ($250,000)
i. Allocate funds for employee parking spaces to be created in alleys that
permit from a zoning and engineering stance
ii. Create one-way alleys for reduction of traffic congestion utilizing signage
and striping arrows
iii. Alternative Transportation Projects - Options to consider for moving
people:
a. More scooters placed near parking spots on the outskirts of
Downtown Bozeman
b. Trolly system for warm seasons
c. Pedi cabs during warm seasons
d. Create bike paths on the outskirts of the city to encourage
ridership into Downtown – but don’t disrupt the streets of
the Core Downtown Area.
e. Place bike racks at all bus stops
iv. Streetscape Preliminary Engineering
a. How do meters and signage play into this streetscape
design for on-street paid parking?
pg. 25
CONCLUSION
As a representative of Downtown employees, business owners and property owners,
collaboration and unity between the public and private sector to determine the future of
Downtown Bozeman is at the forefront of our mission. It is vital that community engagement is
enhanced through more outreach and inclusion of those locals who will be directly affected by
City staff’s decisions, and that transparency on behalf of the city is sustained to build and
maintain trust from the citizens of Bozeman. The strongest recommendation that we put forth is
to choose alternative funding mechanisms for the development of a second parking garage, as
supply management is heavily supported, and the Core Downtown Area is in dire need of more
inventory. Public Private Partnerships are available to the City Staff for consideration, as there
are interested private parties who would fund the remaining $7.5 million dollars needed to secure
the development of a second parking garage. We believe that devising a long-term intelligent
transportation system and infrastructure strategy should be priority, before making fragmented
decisions around parking, transit and mobility for the B-3 district. Employee parking programs
should be established and executed, parking enforcement systems should be heightened, public
transit should be flourishing and increasing in ridership, public private partnerships should be
explored and secured, and more data on occupancy rates, turnover rates, and financial projections
should be on-going to ensure accurate data and that data driven decisions can be made by City
Staff.
pg. 26
APPENDIX A
McCullough Roach – Mcilhattan
Thank you everyone for your opinions and feedback, please keep it coming! If you would like to
get in touch with those running the survey directly, please visit https://bozemanparking.com
Diane Willson – Mountain View VI-VII
Paid Parking costs more than it brings in. You have to have two people to collect the money
from the meters, someone to insure people are paid up on parking, and someone to fix
damaged meters.
Diane Willson – Mountain View VI-VII
I am a local. I think that, if you HAVE to have paid parking, do it so it becomes a donation to
different organizations. For example, this week donations go to the Help center, next week they
go to Big Brothers and Sisters. If it’s by credit card, donations could go straight to the agencies.
Great way to support the community.
Daniel Carty – Midtown
Didn’t the City of Bozeman and Gallatin County just this week sign a MOU for another parking
garage? Don’t know if there is funding or if a location has been chosen. Also, will paid parking
downtown simply push parking into residential northside and southside neighborhoods?
Paul Lundin so the goal is really to replace locals as targets for local businesses with tourists (in
all of the big high-rise condos) and get the locals to eat and shop all around the fringes of town?
I wonder how many downtown businesses could survive without local customers?
Dale… - North East Neighborhood Association
Mary Esther Bingo! I live a few blocks from downtown but it’s easier to do business
elsewhere as downtown has been given over to the Bozeman neo-western theme park.
Just for the tourists. I propose a special sales tax for business in the downtown area to
pay for their impact.
Daniel Carty – Midtown
Dale: Perhaps we can acknowledge that not all of downtown has been given over to the
tourist trade. For example, just to name a few “local,” longtime downtown businesses:
Ace Hardware/Bike Shop, Academy of Cosmetology, Schnee’s, at least two bookstores,
and several “local” restaurants/bars. I’m sure there are more.
Liz Ann Kudrna – Marwyn Addition
Not in favor of paid parking. But I am in support of a sales tax to create more income for the
city and pay for better and more parking. Especially we need more handicap accessible parking
spots. This could potentially pay for better streets and wider bike lanes across the city, for
commuters and recreationalists, alike
Diane Willson - Mountain View VI-VII
Liz absolutely no to any sales tax!
Jennifer Johnson – Midtown
Why is this being considered?
Diane Willson - Mountain View VI-VII
pg. 27
Jennifer because the city wants more money to spend on stuff...
Paul Lundin – Creekwood
Local, no, no We already paid for the streets, why…
Bob Cruz – Baxtercreek
You’ll probably feel differently when the new property taxes kick in. Next year the commission
will re-assess all residences, hike up the property values and then – in 2024 – watch out! I’m
sure people will welcome anything that will offset the higher property taxes to come.
Mary Esther – North 25 th and Durston
Bob Cruz the unfortunate thing is that parking fees won’t end up offsetting the property
taxes. It all just becomes “more revenue.”
Jacqueline Autio – Mcilhattan
Local, no and no
Susan... - South Central Association of Neighbors
Local, no, no
Gene Goldenfeld – South Central Association of Neighbors
It’s more than a tax, since there would be fines for violations, and potential jail for those who
don’t pay. Both this and a local sales tax would be very bad news for local residents and
businesses re patronizing downtown. I hope the everyone screams bloody murder.
Lisa Arnot – Breeze Lane
1. Paid parking is a big NO. Part of the charm of downtown is that you don’t have to pay.
2. I am a local.
3. Paid parking killed the downtown in Louisville KY where I grew up. IN the 1950s the
parking was free on street then it was gone. People flocked to the 1960s style strip malls
instead.
Elin Hert -
Hi! I just took your parking survey. I wanted you to know that I said that paid parking would
deter me from going downtown, but it’s not really because of the money, it’s because of the
hassle of parking a car, walking to the machine, paying the money, returning to put something
on your car… that’s what would weigh the most on the cost-benefit analysis for me.
Gene Goldenfeld – South Central Association of Neighbors
Seems my comment was censored by the system for using a common phrase, which means
scream like the dickens. Both meter parking downtown, as well as a local sales tax, would
discourage me and I imagine a lot of people from patronizing the downtown businesses, unless
they have their own lots (which will be more used by others as well) or the weather allows
biking. I hope people scream a whole lot about these proposals.
McCullough Roach – Mcilhattan
Hello again everyone! Thank you for your feedback. The parking expert that has been hired is
www.dock.bot , a parking reservation software company in the parking industry. The party
responsible for sending out the survey is a concerned group of Downtown business owners who
want to get an understanding for how the public feels about the potential introduction of paid
parking in Downtown Bozeman and what impact it would have on downtown. This survey is not
pg. 28
meant to solve a problem or come up with solutions but rather as the first step to gather
information. I am not employed by any of the parties but volunteered to publish this survey
online and elsewhere. If you have questions please feel free to DM directly.
Dale… - North East Neighborhood Association
Hello McCollough. Ok so now we learn that the “expert” is a private business with a
product to sell. Who specifically make up the “concerned group of Downtown business
owners”? People who stand to profit by the implementation of paid parkin? Wouldn’t
that be correct?
Marcia Kaveney – Creekwood
Does the Downtown Bozeman partnership non-profit approve of this survey?
McCullough Roach – Mcilhattan
Dale, I don’t know why you feel the need to inquire with hostile intent. The business
was hired as a consultant with expertise in the industry, not to sell a product. I will not
list the business owners specifically with respect to their privacy. You are absolutely
INCORRECT in assuming that these are people who would stand to profit by the
implementation of paid parking. IN fact, one of the reasons for conducting this survey is
to get an idea of whether or not customers would decide to avoid downtown and
therefore cause downtown businesses to suffer. The only entity that stands to profit
from the implementation of paid parking would be the city.
McCullough Roach – Mcilhattan
Marcia, it is not associated with the non-profit
Marcia Kaveney – Creekwood
The non-profit might already have the information you desire
Marcia Kaveney – Creekwood
McCullough Roach perhaps these business owners could poll their customers more
directly.
Dale…… - North East Neighborhood Association
The way I read this is the city is seeking to profit from the parking problems they created
downtown. This is what I expect. They also expect to charge homeowners in the
neighboring streets to park on their own street, if not in front of their own home. They
see parking as a resource from which they can profit. Partially this is to fund the creation
of new and great parking police to roam our neighborhoods with license plate scanners
and collect fines. It goes by the very Orwellian name of “Parking Benefit Zones”. This is
where some taxpayers get taxed extra for living near the parking boondoggle that has
been created downtown. I’m not hostile but I don’t see where your survey is designed
to do anything but predict foregone conclusions on the part of self-interested people. I
don’t see where the city has business profiting from taxpayer investments.
Susan… South Central Association of Neighbors
Perhaps the people who are left in (or are new to) Bozeman are too young to remember the
last time parking meters were implemented. It was such a fiasco that the city removed the
meters. You may still be able to see the post holes on Main. I don’t know what the solution is
now that there are too many people and too few places for them to park. Bozeman, like
Boulder, Boise, Bend, et al is being loved to death. I would guess the blame could fall on the city
pg. 29
for its shortsightedness and gladhand to developers. Wish I, or someone, could come up with
an idea that would please everyone. But, Nice try McCullough.
Aaron Diaz – Oak Meadows
No Thumbs Down Thumbs Down Thumbs Down Thumbs Down
Josh S. -Kirk Park
Local, NO, NO
Dawn D… - South Central Association of Neighbors
Local. No and no!
Jacqueline Autio
Local, no, and no
Bob Cruz – Baxtercreek
Good. Make money off the tourists.
Robin Jones - Baxter meadows
We used to have this a long time ago. It sucks. People won’t go downtown. It will hurt business.
Jane... North East Neighborhood Association
McCullough Roach they are trying to address a parking problem that they have created by
absolving developers from the responsibility to provide parking for their developments
Dale Pick… North East Neighborhood Association
Hello Daniel, you said “Also, will paid parking downtown simply push parking into residential,
northside and southside neighborhoods?” The answer is yes that is the plan. Then they intend
to rent out the near downtown streets for parking including excising rent from homeowners
that live on those streets. The rent goes to funding parking police that will drive down those
streets with license plate readers that feed information into a database so they know who is
not paying rent. Those people are fined. Guests of residents who live on those streets must
register in advance to avoid being fined. In a undeniable sense of Orwellian Irony, they call
these otherwise persecuted areas “Parking Benefit Zones.”
Jennifer Johnson – Midtown
Hmm, desire to park downtown doesn’t seem likely to change…is the plan to use the money collected to
improve parking for everyone, or just to tax people who want to park downtown? What will the money
specifically be spent on besides paying the costs associated with implementing the parking meter system?
Heather Glenn – Harvest Creek
Seems like it would be a significant cost to purchase & install Smart meters + maintenance + ticketing +
implementing & collecting fines, etc. No thanks.
pg. 30
AUGUST 2022 OBSERVATIONS
MSU started the week of my visit, indicating an influx of population.
Wed. August 24th 2022: Open surface public parking flat lots were mainly vacant at night,
around 830 pm.
Friday August 26th 2022: Between 11am – 3pm counting street space, I noticed a lot of private
parking space inventory sitting vacant.
Saturday August 27th 2022: Main street on-street parking was nearly 100% occupied at 9am.
This could be employee parking, but more likely it is locals who want to visit Downtown early
mornings on the weekends.
Two areas where I noticed the most space for loading zones were on Wilson Ave and N. Church
Ave
Local perspective on occupancy: 11am-3pm are the highest times for parking occupancy within
Downtown.
After discussions with business owners, downtown employees and walking the streets, it is
apparent that some establishments have parking spaces for their employees, indicating that
employee parking is not a problem for 100% of the business owners, but a portion of them -
which should be identified by the City.
pg. 31
Works Cited
Walker Consultants. “City of Bozeman Preliminary Parking Proforma”. 20 January 2021.
https://legistarweb-production.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/attachment/pdf/1224739/Pro_Forma_Report--City_Of_Bozeman--On-
Street_Parking.pdf
Walker Consultants. “Downtown Bozeman Parking Study: Parking Assessment and Next Steps”. 20 January 2021.
https://www.bozeman.net/home/showpublisheddocument/11718/637744663395970000
United States, City of Bozeman, Downtown Bozeman Businesses Bozeman Transportation Advisory Board Bozeman City
Commission, and Mike Veselik. Memorandum September 28th, 2022.
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Johnson, Sarah. “World Real GDP Will Reach New Peaks in the Second Quarter of 2021.” IHS Markit, 28 May 2021,
https://ihsmarkit.com/research-analysis/world-real-gdp-peaks-in-the-second-quarter-2021.html
Bridge Economic Development, and RWC. “Parking Management Engagement.” Bozeman.net, Jan. 2021.
https://www.bozeman.net/home/showpublisheddocument/10966/637460343164070000
“Parking Benefit Zones.” Bozeman.net, https://www.bozeman.net/departments/economic-development/parking/parking-benefit-
zone
United States, City of Bozeman, Downtown Urban Renewal District, et al. Downtown Urban Renewal District Board Meeting
Notes, 2022, pp. 1–2.
“United States, City of Bozeman, Downtown Area Urban Renewal District Board, and Ellie Staley. Memorandum September
20th 2022.
https://d2kbkoa27fdvtw.cloudfront.net/bozeman/b0bb30b3af85c5a9546a7a7b5b3adb2a0.pdf?utm_medium=email&utm
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“United States, City of Bozeman, Downtown Area Urban Renewal Improvement District Board, and Emily Cope. Memorandum
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Cleveland, David. “Letter to the Editor: Developers Must Respect Neighborhood Character.” Bozeman Daily Chronicle, 13 Mar.
2022, https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/opinions/letters_to_editor/letter-to-the-editor-developers-must-respect-
neighborhood-character/article_542e9962-14fc-5cff-84bd-4a839d632487.html
Shelly, Nora Shelly. “As Bozeman's Growth Moves Fast, Residents Bristle.” Bozeman Daily Chronicle, 20 Feb. 2022,
https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/city/as-bozemans-growth-moves-fast-residents-bristle/article_6705a7cd-
adc2-527d-ab9e-6188e41b2e02.html
United States, City of Bozeman, Wlliams, Rick. City of Bozeman Downtown Strategic Parking Management Plan, vol. 5, 2016.
City of Bozeman, MT., REV. Enforcement; Penalty for violations Section 36.04.380
City of Bozeman, MT., REV. Maximum parking duration designed. Section 36.04.260
City of Bozeman, MT., REV. Number of parking spaces required. Section 38.540.050