sr-051110-8cc7
City ®uncil e
Ciiy of
Santa Adoniea~
City Council Meeting: May 11, 2010
Agenda Item:
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Carol Swindell, Director of Finance
Eileen Fogarty, Director of Planning and Community Development
Subject: Resolution establishing new parking rates for Downtown. Structures 1-9,
Main Library, Civic Center Parking Structure, and Civic Auditorium Lot.
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that City Council adopt attached resolution (Attachment A)
establishing new parking rates for Downtown Structures 1-9, Main Library Structure,
Civic Center Parking Structure, and the Civic Auditorium Lot, as a first phase in
implementing the Walker Parking Study recommendations.
Executive Summary
Pursuant to the direction of City Council at the September 8, 2009 Council meeting,
staff proposes changes to parking rates in Downtown City-owned parking structures,
consistent with recommendations of the Walker Parking Study. The proposed rate
changes included in this report were developed through additional study of rates in
comparable areas and ongoing consultation with the Bayside District Corporation. The
Bayside District generally supports the Walker Study recommendations. After lengthy
discussions with the Bayside District Parking Committee and members of the public,
staff recommends that the decision to reduce "two hours free" parking in the Downtown
be deferred until a later time. This report details the proposed rate changes. The
proposed rate changes for this first phase are as follows:
1) Increase the maximum daily rate in Downtown Structures 1 through 9 from
$7.00/day to $9.00/day and the Civic Center maximum from. $8.00/day to
$9.00/day.
2) Increase the monthly rate for Structures 1 through 9 from $82.50/month to
$121.00/month.
3) Increase the evening flat rates in Downtown Structures 1 through 9 from $3.00 to
$5.00 and implement new evening maximum rates for the Main Library Structure,
Civic Center Parking Structure, and Civic Auditorium lot at a lower rate of $3.00.
The recommended changes provide lower cost parking options during evenings and
weekends in peripheral locations. Furthermore, the recommended changes provide
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lower cost monthly parking rates outside of the Downtown core. These recommended
changes are also consistent with the policy objectives of the LUCE in Germs of improving
the management of parking resources as a part of the City's overall transportation
system. The implementation of the rate changes proposed herein will provide additional
revenue, a portion of which can be used to finance the reconstruction of Parking
Structure #6. Full implementation of the Walker Parking Study recommendations will
provide additional revenue.
Background
The Walker Parking Study, endorsed by Council on September 8, 2009, was afollow-up
to the Downtown Parking Program, adopted by Council on May 9, 2006. The Walker
Parking Study evaluated parking .operations and market conditions in Downtown Santa
Monica and analyzed revenue opportunities from parking rates, in-lieu fees, property-
based assessments ahd other sources as a means to fund recommended
improvements. Walker's overall recommendation was that other than the additional 576
parking spaces planned in the reconstruction of Parking Structure Nos. 1 and 6,
Downtown Santa Monica does not need additional public parking at this time. Rather, in
coordination with the citywide Transportation Management Strategy identified for
implementation in the Circulation Element of the LUCE, Walker recommended
implementation of several actions to support access to Downtown. These actions
included:
® Strategically increase on-street and off-street public parking rates in the Downtown
core to more efficiently and effectively utilize existing public and private parking
resources to meet parking needs, thereby creating greater availability of parking for
visitors to Downtown;
® Use increased parking revenues to fund additional programs to support employee
access to Downtown by transit, bicycle and carpooling;
o Use increased parking revenues to support shuttle service to outlying. parking
resources, including the Civic Center Parking Structure during parking structure
reconstruction;
® Use parking revenues to enhance parking operations, parking technology,
wayfinding, parking occupancy assessment and capital replacement and repair;
® Implement a centralized valet operation to access private parking spaces during off-
peak periods, supplemented by agreements with office building owners to make
empty spaces available to the public on evenings and weekends; and
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• Regularly review parking occupancies and adjust parking rates to encourage optimal
use of public parking resources.
At its September 8. 2009 meeting, City Council directed staff to return with actions
necessary to implement the recommendations of the Walker Parking Study. On
February 23, 2010 staff presented an implementation plan for the recommendations of
the Walker Parking Study. At that meeting, staff noted that that in order to implement
the pricing recommendations of the Walker Study, a phased approach would need to be
developed. Certain recommendations, such as changes to parking structure rates, are
relatively easy to implement and require little or no capital .costs. Other
recommendations, such as changes in parking meter technologies, require more time
and substantial capital investment. Therefore, actions proposed by staff related to the
Walker Study recommendations will occur in a phased manner. The first phase is
recommended to be proposed rate adjustments for Downtown parking structures.
Discussion
At the February 23, 2010 Council meeting, staff stated that a rate study would be
completed prior to implementing any of the rate changes proposed by the Walker
Parking Study. In addition to conducting the rate study, staff worked directly with the
Bayside District Corporation through regular monthly Parking Implementation
Committee meetings to refine the proposed rate changes. The following sections
describe the rate study, the development of the proposed parking rate changes in
coordination with the Bayside District Corporation, public outreach, and the proposed
rate changes.
Rate Study
A summary of the rate study completed by staff is attached to this staff report
(Attachment B).
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Bavside District Corporation Input
The proposed Implementation Plan was endorsed by the Bayside District Corporation's
Parking Implementation Committee on January 12, 2010 and the Bayside Board on
January 28, 2010. Following support of the Implementation Plan, staff met with the
Bayside District Corporation's Parking Implementation Committee on February 8, 2010
and March 9, 2010 to refine the proposed parking rate changes. On March 25, 2010
the proposed rate changes were supported by the Bayside District Corporation Board.
The Bayside District Corporation did not endorse the initial recommendation in the
Walker Parking Study to reduce the existing "two hours free" parking for Downtown
Structures 1-9 to "one hour free." As noted in the rate study, the majority of destination
retail areas in the greater Los Angeles area provide some form of "free" parking for
patrons; therefore, staff recommends maintaining the existing "two hours free" parking
until a viable and effective alternative system, such as validations, can be identified.
The Bayside District Corporation also advocated for reduced-cost monthly parking at
selected City-owned facilities for employees who work in the Downtown area. For this
reason, staff recommends maintaining the existing monthly parking rates at the Main
Library Structure, Civic Center Parking Structure, and Civic Auditorium lot, while also
recommending an increase in the monthly parking rate for Downtown Structures 1-9. In
these cases, the Walker Study recommended an increase in monthly parking rates for
all City-owned facilities.
Public Outreach
During the development of these proposed rate changes, staff heard input from the
public through public comment at Bayside District Corporation meetings. Additionally,
staff met with the Chamber of Commerce shortly after the Council's September action to
gather input on the Walker Study and potential implementation plans.
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Proposed Rate Changes
The proposed rate changes are as follows:
Downtown Structures (PS1 - 9):
• Maintain existing "2 hours free' parking in Downtown Structures (PS 1-g)
• Maintain existing rates'(8:00 AM to 6:00 PM) at $1.00 per 30 minutes
• Increase evening flat rates (after 6:00 PM) from $3.00 to $5.00
• Increase daily maximum rates from $7.00 to $9.00
• Increase monthly parking rates from $82.50 to $121.00
Main Library Structure:
• Maintain hourly rates at $0.50 per 30 minutes, or $1.00 per hour
• Maintain daily maximum rates at $10.00
• Maintain weekend (Saturday and Sunday) and holiday daily flat rate at $3.00
• Implement new evening maximum rate (after 4:00 PM until 11:00 PM) at $3.00
• Maintain monthly parking rate at $82.50
Civic Center Parking Structure and Civic Lot:
• Reduce hourly rates from $1.60 per 20 minutes, or $4.80 per hour, to $1.50 per
20 minutes, or $4.50 per hour
• Increase daily maximum rates from $8.00 to $g.00
• Implement new evening flat rate(after 6:00 PM until 6:00 AM) at $3.00
• Maintain weekend (Saturday and Sunday) and holiday-daily flat rate at $3.00
• Maintain monthly parking rate at $82.50
• Implement :daily flat rate up to $15.00 for event days, with. approval of the City
Manager.
Financial Impacts & Budget Actions
The Walker Parking Study recommends using the changes in parking rates as a means
to manage traffic and parking and also as a funding mechanism to implement parking
programs. The Parking Structure 6 staff report, agenda item 8-D, also identifies funds
generated from this recommendation as one of the sources to fund that project. Finance
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staff is scheduled to bring forward a financing strategy for the Walker Study
recommendations in early fall, following completion of a comprehensive organizational
review currently underway. The recommendations in this report would generate
approximately an addition $175,000 per month or $2,100,000 annually in revenue. The
financing of the reconstruction of Parking Structure 6 is consistent with the Walker
recommendations and would leave approximately $1,500,000 annually to fund other
study recommendations.
Since the rate changes at the Civic Center Parking Structure and Civic Auditorium Lot
would only be effective on non-event days, no change in event-related parking revenues
is anticipated. Community and Cultural Services Department staff estimate $32,587 in
additional event-related parking revenues for FY2010-2011
Community and Cultural Services Department staff estimates a loss in revenue of
$10,918.80 (based on 2009 parking sales data for the Civic Auditorium lot) due to the
proposed reduction in hourly rates. Due to the proposed new rates, a net increase in
parking revenue of $54,959 is estimated for FY2010-2011.
Prepared by: Sam Morrissey, P.E., Principal Transportation Engineer
Approved: Forwarded to Council:
o~~~~ ~ 1~~~ ~~ -.~
Carol Swindell Rod Gould
Director of Finance City Manager
~.
Eileen Fogarty
Director, Planning an Commu ity
Development
6
Attachments:
A. Resolution
B. Summary of Rate Study
Attachment A
Resolution
Attachment 6
Rate study
Summary of Rate Study
Updated: February 8, 2010
The Walker Parking Study (Walker Study) included recommendations to adjust parking rates in
Downtown Parking Structures (Structures 1-6 and 9). The rate adjustments proposed in the Walker
Study are summarized below:
• Increase the evening flat rate from $3 to $5
e Increase the maximum daily rates from $7 to $9
• Increase the monthly rate from $82.50 to $121.00
• Charge $1 per hour beginning in the second hour and charge $2 per hour for each additional
hour
Note: The rate changes shown above are the recommendations of the Walker Study and not identical to
those recommended for implementation as part of Phase 1 and described in the May 11, 2010 City
Council meeting staff report.
City staff conducted a study of parking rates in similar areas throughout Southern California. Parking
rates for facilities (surface lots or structures) were obtained for the following areas:
• Downtown Los Angeles
e Mid-Wilshire
• West Hollywood
• Hollywood Area
• Other Retail Centers
o Westfield Century City
o West Hollywood Gateway
o Paseo Colorado
o The Grove
o The Americana
o The Sunset
0 8000 Sunset
o Westside Pavilion
• Entertainment Districts
o Huntington Beach.
o Newport beach
o San Diego
The average rates charged in parking facilities throughout Southern California are as follows:
'..Structure Rates Around the SoCal Area
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AVERAGE $1.05 $2.26 $1.55 $6.24 $18.87 $10.69 $11.65 $13.29 $158.84 $234.59 $123.54 $120.45
~ x
ROUNDED AVERAGE $1.00 $2.00 $2.00 $6.00
$19.00 $11.00 $12.00 $13.00 $159.00 $235.00 $124.00 $120.00
Source: Citywide Rate Survey, City of Santa Monica and Central Parking, November 2009
Page 1 of 5
As shown on the table above, the average hourly rates, daily maximum rates, and monthly rates are all
well above the Walker Study recommendations.. However, it is important to recognize that the areas
surveyed have unique characteristics, and many of the areas (such as Downtown Los Angeles) have
substantially higher parking rates than recommended in the Walker Study.
To account for the unique characteristics and associated higher parking rates of areas such as
Downtown Los Angeles, City staff identified selected areas included in the rate survey in order to
compare the Walker Study recommended rates for Downtown Santa Monica to areas with similar
features and attractions. For the purposes of this comparison, the following areas were identified:
• Adjacent Shopping Areas
o Westfield Century City
o West Hollywood Gateway
o The Grove
• Downtown Areas
o Hollywood and Highland
o San Diego Gaslamp Quarter
o San Diego Convention Center
• Other Similar Areas
o Paseo Colorado
The chart below presents a comparison of all rates and parking costs for adjacent shopping areas (large
shopping centers with paid parking):
Page 2 of 5
$30.00
$25.00
$20.00
v
~. $15.00
$10.00
$5.00
or rarrcmg ~osis ror Ha~acenc ~noppmg wreas
$0.00
1 2
Santa Monica -Walker
Recommended Self Parking
®westField Ceniury City Self
Parking
-^WCCAMC VaI '.
®WCC Restaurant
West Hollywood Gateway Self
Parking
='^^The Grove Self Parking
~^^^^The Grove Self Parking -Valet
'a7he Grove Cinema
3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Duration (hrs)
Source: Citywide Rate Survey, City of Santa Monica and Central Parking, November 2009
Note that with the proposed Walker Study rate increases, the City of Santa Monica's Downtown
structure parking rates would generally remain lower than other identified areas. Only self parking at
the Westfield Century City would cost less than Downtown Santa Monica. In terms of longer-term
parking, the City of Santa Monica would continue to offer the lowest cost daily maximum parking at
$9.00 for six hours or more, while other areas range from $12.00 to $24.00.
/[ j
yt
i
Page 3 of 5
The chart below presents a comparison of all rates and parking costs for similar Downtown areas as
described previously:
Comparison of Parking Costs for Similar Downtown Areas
Sizoo
5io.oD I
~ Santa Monica -Walker
Recommended Self Parking
i
m_
$8.00 ~ n.,
i ~`
d
~ ~ !q= -San Diego Convention Center
~ ~~
a
w ~~+~
~ $6.00 ~,...:'
~_
,ts` ~ ~^^^^San Diego Gaslamp 4uarte r
$4.00 --- - - ".
$2.00 ~ ..*°~
i
---Hollywood and Highland Self
Parking
$0.00
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Duration (hrs)
Source: Citywide Rate Survey, City of Santa Monica and Central Parking, November 2009
The chart above shows that with the Walker Study recommended rates, Downtown Santa Monica's
Parking Structure rates would be generally consistent with both the Hollywood and Highland center and
Downtown San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter. It would cost more to parkin Downtown Santa Monica for six
hours ($9.00), yet at eight hours the cost to park in Downtown Santa Monica would be between the cost
to park at Hollywood and Highland or in Downtown San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter.
Many of the shopping areas surveyed include some "free parking," in most cases it is the first hour free.
The Americana, the Grove; and West Hollywood Gateway shopping plazas all offer the first hour free;
the Paseo Colorado shopping center offers the first 1.5 hours free with valet; while the Westfield
Century City shopping center offers the first three hours free. Currently the city of Santa Monica
provides two hours free. The Walker Study recommendation to provide the first hour free and charge
$1.00 for the second hour will continue to be evaluated and may be implemented at a later point in
time.
Page 4 of 5
One of the most significant findings of the rate survey is that in adjacent shopping areas the daily
maximum rates tend to be substantially higher than the Walker Study recommended rates. This is
assumed to be a specific strategy used to deter long-term parking in the shopping center structures. In
many locations, the shopping centers (such as Westfield Century City and others) are surrounded by
commercial office buildings. In these locations, the parking rates make it unattractive for employees of
adjacent commercial buildings to park for long periods in the shopping center facilities.
Page 5 of 5
Reference Resolution No.
10475 (CCS).