Parking Pilot study presented at City Commission meeting
A neighborhood parking update was presented by Building Official Brian Kench on June 8 at the City Commission meeting.
A neighborhood parking analysis was done in the neighborhoods adjacent to Central Michigan University to determine what changes were necessary to on-street parking regulations in order to ensure several goals, including a balance in addressing student and resident needs, a reasonable amount of on-street parking, increased use in designated parking areas, sufficient travel lanes and on-street metered parking.
The pilot programs were divided into six studies.
The first followed a 2014 agreement with the university to administer and enforce the city's metered parking adjacent to campus. During the study, revenue from meters decreased by about $29,000. This was due to the parking ticket fees at CMU not matching the university fee. University meter tickets cost $10, and the city's cost $15. In addition, there was a slight decrease in the number of parking tickets issued. The city staff is working with the university to increase the collection rate within the next calendar year.
The second and third studies have to due with establishing residential neighborhood only parking zones. On-street parking areas were restricted to residents only from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Those who required parking during those times were able to request a permit at no charge. There were noticeable increases in on-street parking along the 1000 block of Lansing Street, according to the study. Kench said the transformation with on-street parking has been fairly dramatic since the new regulations went into effect.
The next pilot study was to introduce smart meter technology, so users could pay with a credit card as opposed to coins. Kench said these were rarely utilized, and the city might want to consider implementing the technology at a later time.
Expanding on-street parking along West Campus Drive was a topic of discussion, resulting in providing pavement markings for 16 new parking spaces along the street. The city will keep the spaces free of charge to lessen the potential for commuters traveling into the residential district seeking alternative parking.
The final study considered changes in overnight on-street parking regulations. This reduced restricted hours for overnight parking from December 2014-April 2015. Problems encountered were along Main and Locust streets where deficiencies in parking may exist for some student rental properties, according to the study. This led the commission to set a public hearing to amend section 71.27, overnight parking, for June 22.
Also approved by the City Commission include:
- Approval of the 2016-2020 Capital Improvement Plan
- A resolution to support Michigan Department of Environmental Equality Scrap Tire Market Development Grant application and budget at the same time
- Freedom of Information Act rates and fees
- Payrolls and warrants
