Parking Commission - October 25, 2018 Minutes
The Regular Meeting of the Board of Parking Commissioners of the City of Fargo, North Dakota, was held in the City Commission Room at City Hall at 9:00 a.m., Thursday, October 25, 2018.
The Parking Commissioners present or absent were as follows:
Present: Mike Williams, Margie Bailly, Brian Hayer, Randy Thorson
Absent: Jay Krabbenhoft
Chair Williams called the meeting to order.
Item 1: Approve Order of Agenda
Member Thorson moved the Order of Agenda be approved as presented. Second by Member Hayer. All Members present voted aye and the motion was declared carried.
Item 2: Minutes: Regular Meeting of August 30, 2018
Member Bailly moved the minutes of the August 30, 2018 Parking Commission meeting be approved. Second by Member Thorson. All Members present voted aye and the motion was declared carried.
Item 3: August Financial and Operations Report
Operations Manager Andy Renfrew, Interstate Parking (IP), reviewed the August 2018 financial and operations report. He noted a decrease in revenue and net income due to patrol staff turnover and the rise in revenue seen in July 2018 due to downtown events. Overall, he noted activity was steady.
Item 4: September Financial and Operations Report
Mr. Andy Renfrew reviewed the September 2018 financial and operations report. He gave an overview of ramp repairs and relocation accommodations made during the repairs.
The Board also discussed the following: tenant and public notification of ramp closures, time zone violations, and ramp validations.
Item 5: Parking Rates: APPROVED
Mr. Renfrew reviewed staff’s recommendations for proposed fee changes to the Parking Rate Schedule for 2019. He noted suggested changes according to the higher and lower demand of ramps and trying to maintain a balance.
Member Thorson moved to recommend approval to the City Commission of the proposed recommended 2019 monthly rates for the GTC, Island Park, RoCo, and Civic Ramps the proposed recommended minimum for the remainder of the lots, and the proposed recommended hourly rates as presented. Second by Member Hayer. All Members present voted aye and the motion was declared carried.
Item 6: Interstate Parking Citation Fines Reports: TABLED
Mr. Renfrew presented a background of the current parking citation fines and the proposed increases. He noted ongoing work with the Passport system and that it is almost ready to go live.
Discussion was held regarding the escalating fine structure for time zone violations versus the no-parking zone set fines, and what other cities do to address the issue.
Kathy Spielman, Fargo Police Department, shared that the no-parking zone fines are applicable all over the City and that the graduated fines are just downtown.
Discussion continued regarding what other cities do to address the issues, the welcome tickets, flexibility and process during downtown construction, and repeat offenders.
Action on this item will be tabled to next months meeting.
Item 7: Future Parking Facilities
Strategic Planning Director Jim Gilmour began a conversation regarding the need for an additional parking facility in downtown. He noted the net gain of parking spaces over the last four year has only been 15 parking spots.
Discussion was held noting this as a topic for the upcoming Parking Commission retreat.
Item 8: Restoration Projects
Mr. Gilmour presented an overview of restoration work in downtown parking facilities. He noted outstanding items included camera systems at the Island Park and Civic Center ramps, as well as roof repair of the stair towers of the Civic Center ramp.
Discussion was held regarding financing the remaining repairs
Item 9: Block 9 Update: APPROVED
Assistant Planning Director Mark Williams presented a proposal for the permanent parking plan upon completion of the Block 9 project.
Project Manager Keith Leier, Kilbourne Group, spoke on behalf of the project.
Discussion was held regarding net amount of parking and parking rates. It was noted there is a 25-year agreement with the City for fees to be consistent with City owned lots.
Melissa Rademacher, Downtown Community Partnership (DCP) President, spoke regarding maintaining communication between all parties involved. She noted the DCP is working on a newsletter to provide more information.
City Commissioner Dave Piepkorn noted it would be good to review the Engineering Department process and policy for issuing permits for construction parking, and sidewalk and street closures.
Mr. Gilmour noted the importance of continuing to look ahead and plan for the next future parking facility.
Chair Williams noted intent to invite Jeremy Gorden from the Engineering Department to the next meeting to continue the conversation.
Member Hayer moved to approve the long-term parking plan for the Block 9 Project as presented. Second by Member Bailly. All Members present voted aye and the motion was declared carried.
Item 10: Contractor Parking Discussion
This item was heard with Item 9.
Item 11: Bylaws Discussion
Assistant Planning Director Mark Williams noted that there are no official bylaws for the Parking Commission on record. He provided a brief history of the Parking Management Board.
Board Discussion was held on the following: the role of the Parking Commission; possible addition of future Board members; the importance of more communication between the Parking Commission, other Boards, and City departments; legislature needed for parking meters; and areas of future focus. City Commissioner Dave Piepkorn suggested these would all be good subjects for the Parking Commission retreat.
Item 12: Other Business
Jerry Christianson, Freedom Resource Center, spoke on disability rights and downtown compliance with handicap parking. He noted that there is an obligation for accessibility and that the downtown has a liability of not currently fulfilling proper ADA parking requirements.
Discussion was held regarding conducting an audit of what would need to be done for compliance and adding this topic to the Parking Commission retreat agenda.
Mr. Christianson provided a handout to the Board on Accessible Parking Design for North Dakota.
Item 13: Adjournment
Member Bailly moved to adjourn the meeting at 10:50 a.m. Second by Member Thorson. All Members present voted aye and the motion was declared carried.