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HomeMy WebLinkAbout7/16/2024 Item 7a, Horn and King - Staff Agenda CorrespondenceCity of San Luis Obispo, Council Memorandum City of San Luis Obispo Council Agenda Correspondence DATE: July 15, 2024 TO: Mayor and Council FROM: Matt Horn, Public Works Director Prepared By: Donna King, Parking Program Manager VIA: Whitney McDonald, Interim City Manager SUBJECT: ITEM 7A – INTRODUCE AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND TITLE 10 OF THE MUNICIPAL CODE AND ADOPT A RESOLUTION MODIFYING THE DANA STREET PARKING DISTRICT Staff received the following questions, regarding changes to the Dana Street Preferential Parking District. The questions are below with staff’s response shown in italics: 1) What is the current occupancy on Dana Street? The Dana Street Parking District is comprised of 78 parking spaces and 116 permits have been issued in the district. The current provisions for Dana Street allow up to 124 eligible permits to be sold. As noted in the staff report, the average parking utilization measured in April 2024 was 26%. 2) Why is staff recommending modifying the Municipal Code? Staff is recommending removal of the specifics in the Municipal Code that limit the City’s ability to address parking needs on Dana Street, as usage and needs on Dana Street have changed over time. Staff is recommending that, instead, Council delegate authority via resolution to staff to make adjustments to the parking district after outreach to Dana Street Parking District members. The delegated authority would be temporary until the completion of the Cultural Arts District Parking Structure in early 2026. 3) Will 10-hour paid parking spaces be added to Dana Street? No. There are no current plans to add 10-hour paid parking spaces to Dana Street. Any new 10-hour paid parking spaces require review and approval from Council and are required to be implemented via ordinance. The staff report also discusses “timed overlay zones” which could allow residents, visitors, and employees the ability to park on Dana St for restricted hours, but that is also not recommended at this time. Item 7a. Introduce an Ordinance to Amend Title 10 Page 2 4) I live on Dana Street and have multiple drivers in my household. Can I get more permits? Staff is intending to issue up to two parking district permits to each residential addressed property that participates in the parking district. This will allow each unit on a multi-family residential property, regardless of the number of units, to receive two permits, including two permits per unit in the 16-unit complex as well as other six and eight unit complexes on Dana Street. This modification could increase the total number of parking permits issued to residential properties by 60. Staff is not recommending increasing the number of preferential parking district permits for residential properties in excess of two per address. Other parking districts are also limited to two permits per address, including in districts where it is routine to have more than two licensed drivers or more than two vehicles per residence, especially in and around the Cal Poly area. 5) How many permits will be issued to commercial properties on Dana Street? Can permit issuance be based on square footage of the business or number of employees rather than per address? Staff is intending to initially issue up to four parking district permits to each commercial property that participates in the parking district. Staff will complete occupancy studies monthly in the district after the recommended changes have been implemented. Each month the parking utilization rates are below 50% to 60%, commercial properties will be offered the option to purchase one additional parking permit. This occupancy work and increasing the number of commercial parking permits issued will occur until all commercial properties have the desired number of parking permits or until the average occupancy rate is somewhere between the 50 to 60% range. Staff is not recommending issuing preferential parking permits based upon property square footage or number of employees because square footage information and the total number of employees within a commercial space is not readily available to Parking Services staff. 6) Are contractors for the Cultural Arts District Parking Structure (CADPS) allowed to park on Dana Street? Contractors working on the CADPS are not specifically given the ability to park within the Dana Street Parking District. Some contractors that work on the CADPS project are parking within the Dana Street Parking District as their companies are renting or leasing commercial properties within the Dana Street Parking District. There are currently two CADPS contractors that lease property within the Dana Street Parking District. Each contractor has been issued four temporary parking permits. CADPS contractors leasing or renting commercial properties within the Dana Street Parking District will be subject to all the same benefits and restrictions as other commercial properties within the Dana Street Parking District. Item 7a. Introduce an Ordinance to Amend Title 10 Page 3 7) Where can Mission Prep faculty and staff park during the construction of CADPS? As stated in the staff report, Mission Prep students and faculty will be encouraged to purchase garage permits in the Fall of 2024 when school resumes. Staff recommends students park in the garages to alleviate additional foot and vehicular traffic near the construction site. This will promote additional safety for young drivers by avoiding traveling through a construction zone and provide cost savings with the newly reduced garage permit price of $45 per month. Staff are communicating with the school on the new rate as they gear up for the 2024-2025 school year. 8) There are plans to develop 466 Dana Street. How will this impact parking on Dana Street? The proposed project is an affordable housing community known as the Waterman Peace Village and will provide 20 units of housing around the historic Rosa Butron Adobe. The proposed community will be specifically targeting residents who are looking to live a car-free lifestyle close to downtown amenities. The project provides bike storage as well as e-bike charging facilities sized appropriately for each resident to own a bike. As currently proposed, there will be 4 parking spaces including one Americans with Disabilities (ADA) compliant parking space on-site. The project site (466 Dana Street) is not included in the Dana Street Parking District as the property is not a current residential use. As a result, under the current regulations and proposed actions, this property would not be issued any parking permits in the district at this time. The project is currently being developed by the applicant and will likely require review by the City’s Building and Safety Division, Architectural Review Commission and the Cultural Heritage Committee. Construction is anticipated to begin in 2025. 9) The map of Dana Street in the agenda report calls out an area for 8am-2am. What does this time period specify? We have 12 preferential parking districts. Each district has different operational hours dependent on the needs of the district when the district was established. The current 8 am to 2 am residential permit operational hours are what was approved when the Dana Street Preferential Parking District was established in 2020 and is what is currently posted and enforced. Staff is not making any recommendation to change the district hours for residential permits. The commercial parking permits were established in March 2022 with daytime use restricted hours of 8 am to 6 pm. Staff proposed Ordinance amendment and Resolution would authorize the Public Works Director to remove the daytime use restriction hours from commercial parking permits and is staff’s plan.