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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTESO1HKOIH ox 1xE wn~ OSHKOSH PARKING UTILITY COMMISSION MINUTES JANUARY 21, 2009 PRESENT: Jim Stapel Presiding, Dennis McHugh, Mary Murken and Jay Ratchman STAFF: Christopher Strong, Transportation Director Jennifer Weigand, Recording Secretary David Patek, Director of Public Works Susan Kepplinger, Principal Planner CALL TO ORDER Chairman Stapel called the meeting to order at 4:02 p.m. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Mr. Ratchman moved to accept the December 10, 2008 minutes. Mr. McHugh seconded the motion. Motion carried unanimously. NEW BUSINESS 1. SELECTION OF PAYMENT COLLECTION METHOD FOR JEFFERSON (400 BLOCK EAST) LOT Mr. Strong outlined the three basic alternatives available: 1) meters, 2) pay and display and 3) no payment. With pay and display, Mr. McHugh questioned the distance one would have to walk to a terminal. Mr. Strong replied approximately 150 feet. He noted there would be one on each side of the parking lot. Mr. McHugh felt the idea was good but the distance to walk could be a negative aspect. There was a question as to how pay and display would work with providing free parking. Mr. Strong said some communities segregate the lots and enforcement is needed and others charge a very nominal fee for the first 2 hours and than more of a normal parking rate after that. That way everyone pays something. Mr. Stapel noted he has used pay and display in Europe and it's marked very clearly. Mr. Strong said one of the benefits with pay and display is the flexibility. Mr. McHugh questioned if the tickets would be different colors. Mr. Strong replied the tickets would all be the same color but the vendor could customize the date and time format to make it easier for enforcement. Mr. Ratchman was concerned with how it would be monitored. He feels we are doing a terrible job on parking enforcement. He noted in December he used another vehicle without a parking sticker and never once got ticketed. He questioned why he is buying parking permits. In October, he said his employees were not plugging the parking meters because there was not enforcement. He stressed that the parking needs enforcement. PARKING UTILITY MINUTES Page 2 JANUARY 21, 2008 Mr. McHugh asked who was in charge of the employees responsible for parking enforcement. Mr. Strong replied Scott Footit. Mr. Patek said the Police Dept. was being lenient in enforcement this past month because of all the snowfall. This has resulted in snow piles in the parking lots, which causes people to park in other spaces. Mr. McHugh said this is the third month in a row that the Commission has talked about the enforcement problem. Ms. Murken arrived at 4:21 p. m. Mr. McHugh liked the flexibility of pay and display. Mr. Ratchman liked it because of the aesthetics. Mr. Stapel felt it was be an interesting experiment. Mr. McHugh moved to establish pay and display as a payment method for the Jefferson (400 block east) Lot. Mr. Ratchman seconded the motion. Motion carried (4-0). 3. PROPOSAL TO ELIMINATE SOME ON-STREET METERS Mr. Strong explained his proposal to the Commission. He noted the estimated revenue loss from removing the proposed 54 meters would be approximately $300 per year. Hopefully, as a result of this, the parking utilization of these areas would increase. Mr. Ratchman asked what type of parking restrictions would replace these meters. Mr. Strong replied it would correlate with surrounding parking restrictions. These parking restrictions would go before the Traffic Review Board for recommendation to the Common Council. Ms. Murken moved to eliminate the suggested parking meters. Mr. Ratchman seconded the motion. Motion carried (4-0). OLD BUSINESS 1. APPROVAL OF JEFFERSON (400 BLOCK EAST) LOT RECONSTRUCTION PROJECT. Ms. Susan Kepplinger gave a brief synopsis on the project. Mr. Murken moved to approve the project. Mr. Ratchman seconded the motion. Motion carried (3-1 McHugh). 2. APPROVAL OF REALLOCATION OF SPACES IN JEFFERSON (400 BLOCK EAST) LOT. Ms. Kepplinger gave a brief explanation on the reallocation of the parking spaces. She noted there will be one parking stall per address for 14 properties for fifteen years. One owner, who has two addresses and a parking garage, will be given two parking stalls with the stipulation that she will have these spaces for only as long as she resides there. Ms. Murken inquired to what happens when this person no longer lives there. Ms. Kepplinger replied the spaces would be gone, but the property would still have the garage for parking. Ms. Murken moved to approve the reallocation of spaces. Mr. Ratchman seconded the motion. Motion carried (3-1 McHugh). PARKING UTILITY MINUTES Page 3 JANUARY 21, 2008 NEW BUSINESS 2. DISCUSSION OF OTHER CITIES' APPROACHES TO MUNICIPAL PARKING Mr. Strong commented that there are a lot of ways to structure a parking utility's operation. There does not appear to be a universal way. Mr. McHugh has observed that many cities have parking ramps and wondered if that could be an opportunity for the Parking Utility. Mr. Strong said that the city's parking ramps were erected before his time, and he was aware that they developed maintenance problems over time. Mr. McHugh noted that when the ramp on High Avenue was first constructed, they had afull-time maintenance person on-site. Once that position was eliminated, the upkeep of the ramp slowly diminished. He questioned why there hasn't been any discussion for a parking ramp along the river. Ms. Murken asked if we should raise our parking rates. Mr. Strong answered that, based on his contact with other Wisconsin communities, our rates are reasonable and typical for the size of our city. STAFF STATEMENTS Mr. Stapel would like to see a shortened version of the cash flow report. Mr. Ratchman presented a letter from Dr. Jeffrey Marsh regarding a parking problem in the 400 Block West Lot. Mr. McHugh said the solution is simple -enforcement. He would like to have Police Chief Greuel attend the next meeting and address these issues. ADJOURNMENT There being no other business to come before the Parking Utility Commission, and upon being duly moved and seconded, (McHugh, Murken) the meeting adjourned at 5:08 p. m.