City of Alexandria, Virginia
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MEMORANDUM
DATE: SEPTEMBER 18, 2019
TO: THE HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL
FROM: MARK B. JINKS, CITY MANAGER /s/
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Consideration of a Resolution to Establish a $1 Per Hour Metered Rate in Appropriate Locations.[ROLL-CALL VOTE]
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ISSUE: Consideration of a resolution to establish a $1 per hour metered rate in appropriate locations.
RECOMMENDATION: That City Council adopt the resolution (Attachment 1) to approve a $1 per hour rate in appropriate locations as recommended by the Director of T&ES after consideration by the Traffic and Parking Board.
BACKGROUND: Section 5-8-93 of the City Code addresses the process to set the hours, days, maximum parking time periods, and rates for metered blocks in the City. Currently, the following have been approved and are in place in the City:
• 2-hour max parking, 8AM to 9PM, Monday to Saturday, $1.75 an hour (applies to most meters in Old Town east of Alfred Street and in Carlyle/Eisenhower East);
• 3-hour max parking, 8AM to 9PM, Monday to Saturday, $1.75 an hour (applies to most meters in Old Town west of Alfred Street); and
• 3-hour max parking, 8AM to 9PM, Monday to Saturday, $1.75 an hour (applies to meters in Potomac Yard).
In 2018, an amendment to this section allowed for the City Council to set the specific details for meters related to rates and hours by resolution. The Traffic and Parking Board is charged with considering locations for new metered blocks. This change was intended to allow for more flexibility in addressing specific metered parking needs for an area or a block to improve utilization and parking management.
DISCUSSION: In the FY 2020 budget, City Council approved a budget adjustment that instructed staff to install new meters in certain parts of the City. However, as staff has observed utilization of metered areas across the City, it also identified some blocks that are not as well utilized as others. This is mainly due to the demand for parking in the area, the attractiveness of the space given the proximity from office, retail, or other parking generators, and the availability of other parking options. One such location is the neighborhood south of Eisenhower Avenue between Holland Lane and Hooff’s Run Drive (Attachment 2). This neighborhood includes the Alex Renew administration building, Limerick Field, an apartment building and a commercial area (with off-street parking). Except for Hooff’s Run Drive, all of the on-street parking in this neighborhood is metered parking. Despite being several blocks south of the Carlyle neighborhood and offices and across Eisenhower Avenue, the hours and rate are similar to the rest of Carlyle and Eisenhower East, which is 2-hour parking, Monday to Saturday, 8AM to 9PM. Hooff’s Run Drive is currently 2-hour unpaid parking but was just approved for meters by the Traffic and Parking Board at their meeting on July 22, 2019.
Given the location several blocks from the main office and retail in Carlyle and the fact the commercial and residential uses in this neighborhood have off-street parking, the metered parking is underutilized. Staff has proposed using a lower meter rate in this area to test whether this improves utilization at these spaces (the existing 2-hour maximum time limit would remain to ensure turnover and parking is available at the nearby athletic field at the Alex Renew building). This resolution would establish a $1 per hour meter rate as a lower rate alternative to the standard $1.75 rate. This is intended for areas of lower utilization that may benefit from a lower rate in order to make the spaces more attractive to parkers. At this time, beyond the proposed all day meter rate on Jamieson near Hoof’s run, there are no other locations actively under consideration for the lower meter rates. However, if other locations are deemed appropriate for such a change, staff would bring the proposal to the Traffic and Parking Board for a public hearing and consideration.
The Traffic and Parking Board considered this proposal at its meeting on July 22, 2019 and voted unanimously to recommend the Council approve a resolution to allow these changes. There were no speakers on this item.
FISCAL IMPACT: The adoption of this resolution will provide another rate structure for metered spaces in the City. As staff would normally only consider this rate structure in locations where utilization is low where the intent is to make the spaces more attractive, there is a potentially positive fiscal impact associated with this resolution as more vehicles would be paying to park. As the spaces along Hooff’s Run Drive are new metered locations, using this rate structure, staff anticipates a fiscal impact of an additional $10,000 annually. This assumes that at least half of the spaces on these blocks are occupied by parkers who pay to park least 20 days a month. Staff will monitor the utilization of these blocks to determine whether the change to the rate structure has improved utilization or if other changes need to be made.
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1: Resolution
Attachment 2: Map of Proposed Area for $1 per Hour Meter Rate
STAFF:
Emily A. Baker, Deputy City Manager
Yon Lambert, Director, T&ES
Hillary Orr, Deputy Director of Transportation, T&ES
Katye North, Division Chief, Mobility Services, T&ES
Alex Block, Principal Planner, Mobility Services, T&ES
Megan Oleynik, Urban Planner, Mobility Services, T&ES