The Downtown Parking Management Plan

Part of the Downtown Specific Plan Update Parking Management Plan – Underway Synoptic Survey -Underway Update the Downtown Zoning and Codes Modify Other Downtown Specific Plan Sections Update 2003 DTSP

Improve Access and Parking Downtown

Improve Car, Bike and Pedestrian Mobility

Make the Downtown a Magnet for People

The Mission Develop and deploy the policies, programs and actions that will result in a more efficient and effective access to and use of parking resources and access for motorists, bicyclists, and pedestrians throughout the Downtown.

The Parts of the Plan Context Parking Demand Parking Supply Parking Utilization Assessment Strategies and Measures

The Physical Context North Street Cleveland Street East Street Main Street East Street Lincoln Street

Main Street

Physical Context Considerations Distance: People will walk 1000 feet or more to shop and to a worthy destination - if the route is safe, comfortable, convenient and relatively attractive. Park here

Overly narrow or obstructed sidewalks

Inadequate tree canopies

Inadequate Street / Parking Lot Lighting Inadequate lighting on some north-south streets and public lots constrains pedestrian use because of safety and security concerns, particularly in the late fall, winter and early spring evenings.

Inadequate Pedestrian Street Lighting

Physical Context Considerations The Pathway: Walking by empty and boring storefronts and lots make the trip tedious and inconvenient. Inadequately shaded sidewalks make parking and walking uncomfortable in the summer.

Public and Private Signs Inadequate, confusing, unattractive and misplaced signage frustrates drivers and pedestrians.

The People Context: Interviews

Interviews Responses: Add Diagonal Parking Slow Traffic Speeds Add Stop Signs Add Parking Permits Need a Parking Garage Inadequate Street Lighting

Businesses Responses Add Diagonal Parking – Yes, need more on-street Traffic Speeds – Mixed, but slower is better Add Stop Signs – Mixed, but not if it diverts traffic Add Parking Permits – Yes and no Need Parking Garage – Yes Lighting Adequacy – Not good, a major deterrent Other - Some employees use core spaces and move their vehicles every two hours to avoid citations. Other - Keep parking free with two-hour or longer limits where necessary for on-street parking and lots.

Context: Parking Trends The new eight screen cinema will attract motorist who seek parking within walking distance of the theater, particularly during evenings and weekends. Each new Downtown commercial and residential development will likely increase parking demands. Millennials and younger, less car dependent, will reduce parking demands – if walking is an option. Autonomous private vehicles should reduce parking demand, but when and by how much? Similarly, autonomous transit or just better transit will reduce demand, but when and by how much?

Parking Demand: What Drives It?

Auto-Dependency, Inadequate Transit

Perception or Reality: Insufficient or Inconvenient Public Parking

Minimum Parking Requirements Multifamily: Studio: one space per unit 1 bedroom: one space per unit 2 bedroom: one and three-quarter spaces per unit 3+ bedroom: two spaces per unit. (D) Offices (except medical offices and clinics): one space for each four hundred square feet of gross floor area; (E) Retail stores, banks: one space for each three hundred square feet of gross floor area; (F) Restaurants, cafes, coffee shops, bars and establishments with on-site alcohol sales: one space for each three hundred square feet of gross floor area;

Parking Demand: How Many Public Spaces Required?

2017 Public Parking Demand* Weekday Daytime Parking Demand: 758 spaces Weekday Evening Parking Demand: 482 spaces Weekend Daytime Parking Demand: 525 spaces Weekend Evening Parking Demand: 556 spaces Average Weekday + Weekend Demand: 580 spaces Peak Weekday + Weekend Demand: 758 spaces *Combined on street and off street public parking, based on multiple recorded observations on January and February 2017.

Ten Year Estimated Demand: Opportunity Sites Other

Ten Year Estimated Public Parking Demand With Infill and Redevelopment: 334 Non-Residential Spaces Required At 30% Public: 100 Public Spaces Required

2027 Public Parking Demand 2017 Average Demand: 580 spaces 2017 Peak Demand: 758 spaces 2027 Additional 100 spaces 2027 Average Demand: 680 spaces 2027 Peak Demand: 858 spaces

The number of Downtown on-street and public parking lot spaces Public Parking Supply The number of Downtown on-street and public parking lot spaces

The Inventory: Walking and Counting

584 On-Street Spaces

1,044 Public Parking Lot Spaces

Total Public Parking Supply 584 On-Street + 1044 Lot Spaces = 1,628 Public Spaces

Supply vs. Peak Demand 2017 Peak Parking Demand: 758 spaces 2017 On-Street + Public Lot Supply: 1,628 spaces 2017 Supply – Peak Demand Total: + 870 spaces 2027 Supply – Peak Demand Total: + 770 spaces More than enough parking spaces – but where are they and how are they used?

Public Parking Utilization The total occupancy of on-street and public parking lots during peak hourly periods - noon to 1:00 PM and 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM, weekdays and weekends - a primary measure of parking usage, an indicator of driver parking preferences and behaviors during maximum use times.

Utilization: Walking and Counting Six Periods, Weekday and Weekend

On-Street Utilization Peak Occupancies Main Street Fifth / Sixth Peak Occupancies Main / Court / Lincoln College / First Cross / Pendegast

On-Street Utilization Public Lot Utilization Peak Occupancies Lots on Both Sides of Main 5 6 7 Main Street 8 9

Public Parking Utilization Utilization Averages: Weekday Noon to 1:00 PM: 44% Weekday 7:00 to 8:00 PM: 31% Weekend Noon to 1:00 PM: 34% Weekend 7:00 to 8:00 PM: 36% Weekday + Weekend: 39% 2017 utilization 39% x 1,628 spaces: 635 spaces used on average

Assessment The following evaluation or assessment of the physical conditions, the Context, Inventory, Demand, and Utilization investigations, and public engagement, precedes the formulation of recommended measures.

Assessment of Physical Conditions The Downtown contains more than enough public parking spaces but motorists use less than half! Some park-and-walk routes appear unsafe, uncomfortable, inconvenient or just to far to walk to. A primary constraint after sundown is an inadequacy of lighting on some north-south streets and in public lots. Some sidewalks front on empty, boring storefronts & lots Discomfort of inadequately shaded sidewalks and lots Inadequate, confusing, unattractive and misplaced public and private signage. How can you find a parking lot?

Assessment of Stakeholder Input Retailers want more on-street parking or lots close by Excessive traffic speeds – reduce below 25 mph Stop signs at Main Street may divert shopper traffic Parking limits inconsistent with Downtown venues Parking permits require management and enforcement Add a parking garage if other parking actions fail Improve lighting by innovative means (e.g., on buildings) Employees use core spaces so better lighting will help Free parking now, later consider fee-based parking Use excess private parking through Shared Parking Plan

Recommended Parking Management Strategies and Measures

Create a Park Once and Walk District

Measures: Increase public sidewalks widths to maintain widths that accommodate people walking together. Remove obstructions such as sign posts in the pathway. Add a sidewalk improvement plan to City capital improvement projects list. Collaborate with the Chamber of Commerce and the Historic Downtown Woodland Group to help. Increase sidewalk width

Measures: Improve street and parking lot lighting by installing lights on exterior building walls and other locations to increase illumination on sidewalks and public parking areas. Collaborate with the Chamber of Commerce and the Historic Downtown Woodland Group to help add exterior lighting at under-illuminated areas. Work with building owners to replace existing, inefficient luminaires with LEDs and to add new photovoltaic lighting to avoid wiring new luminaires and to save energy costs.

Measures: Increase shade tree canopy Collaborate with City Arborist and local groups to add appropriate trees and maintain existing stock. Work with property owners to help add shade trees on the front of their properties.

Measures: Infill empty lots and redevelopment underutilized sites. Collaborate with the Chamber of Commerce and the Historic Downtown Woodland Group to help with infill and redevelopment incentives. Incentivize infill and redevelopment with the new citywide up-zoning process

Measures: Improve public and private signage: Update and deploy a Downtown Signage Plan. Incorporate new a signage ordinance into the Downtown design and development standards.

Measure: add diagonal parking on the west side of 2nd Street between Main Street and Lincoln Street.

Measure: Calibrate the allowed time duration of on-street parking and public lot spaces to match business demands. For example, new cinema attendees will require three-hour parking spaces for most shows. Incentivize business employees to park away from prime shopping spaces. Consider employee or neighborhood parking permits, which require additional management to administer and enforce, if shared private parking and better lighting on non-timed street parking fail to satisfy parking needs 3

Measures: Develop shared parking agreements or plans for business and employee parking in underutilize private lots. Shared parking is a transaction between different land uses (a bank, a theater and a bar or restaurant) that contain off-street parking and different periods of parking demand, to allow the use of unused parking spaces by another that needs the excess parking. Work with Chamber of Commerce and the Historic Downtown Woodland Group to create a plan.

Over 1,000 spaces are available (2,937 total private spaces). Shared parking allows a use to reduce the amount of parking normally required if two or more uses have peak demand at different times of day or day of week. Liability insurance coverage is available and can be incorporated into the shared parking agreements.

Individual lot owners can create cross parking agreements or a private parking management company can broker agreements between users. Determine the number of spaces a business or lot owner will provide by day and time period – the supply – and the number of spaces a business needs for customers or employees by day and time period – the demand. Create a shared lot parking map and schedule. Match suppliers with potential users. Bring the parties together to work out specific agreements.

Other Recommended Measures Use Transportation Demand Management (TDM) strategies to reduce travel demand or redistribute demand in space or time, for example, providing better transit options within and to and from Downtown. Change signal light timing on Main Street to slow traffic to below 25. 18-20 mph is an optimum speed for traffic flow and best viewing of storefronts and parking spaces.

Recommend holding off replacing signal lights with stop signs on Main Street in favor of signal light timing. Brief analysis: stop signs on the short blocks can cause backups and vehicles to divert to Court and Lincoln. It can be tested using flashing red signals over longer period.

Recommend that a Parking Garage is not necessary The Downtown contains enough parking provided that access to on-street and public lots is safe, convenient, attractive, and comfortable. As of March 2014, the median construction cost for a new parking structure is $18,038 per space. It’s more cost effective to improve the existing parking and access routes. Autonomous vehicles will reduce parking demands.

Next Steps Re