Feb 14, 2008 - 16:38:24 CST
The Bismarck Parking Authority gave mixed reviews to a draft plan on downtown parking being developed by Carl Walker Inc. for the Bismarck City Commission.Authority members traded their perceptions of the draft at Thursday's regular monthly meeting.
Rocky Gordon, whose company manages the downtown parking ramps, pointed out that it is just a preliminary report.
"If the parking authority is asked to do what the study is recommending, it expands the authority's role quite a bit," Gordon said. "It's conceivable the parking authority won't be asked to do any at all."
Authority members were critical of the fact that the consultant never met with the authority board and also of the time selected to collect parking data.
Gordon and board member Brian Peterson were members of a committee that did meet with the consultant, but they were asked for little information about operations of the ramps.
"They didn't spend hardly any time on current operations. Some of the recommendations being made, we're already doing," Gordon said.
Authority chairman Ray Grabar said that the survey of downtown parking was taken in July. "The problem is, that's not a big traffic month downtown. I'd have rather seen them do it in September or October," he said.
Dawn Kopp, executive director of the Downtowners Association, also said the data collection was made at an unfortunate time and has heard several similar comments.
Claudia Masseth, a member of the Downtowners board, compared the draft report and recommendations with a similar study made 15 years ago.
"A lot of the same points are made. Those are the issues that should be focused on because they have been going on for many years and nothing has been done," Masseth said. "I think people downtown are hoping something will be done."
The area studied has boundaries of Sweet Avenue to the south, excluding the Civic Center; Washington Street on the west; Avenue B to the north; and 12th Street on the east. A smaller focus study looked at the downtown core, where there is time limit parking.
Traffic engineer Mark Berg is glad the study is being done because it is pulling all the various issues with parking together. While the parking authority has jurisdiction over city-owned downtown parking, mostly involving the parking ramps, Berg is in charge of placing signs.
"Actually, there is no one that controls time limits," Berg said. "What the draft is recommending is that everything be brought under one authority. My position would be one of technical adviser."
Authority members and Berg said they were interested in the recommended use of parking meters. While this is not allowed by state law, the city of Fargo is planning on taking the issue to the state Legislature next year, Berg said.
A separate, more focused study on the downtown medical centers and their needs is recommended by Carl Walker, Berg said. Authority members were buoyed by the study, saying the agreed that a parking ramp on the eastern half of the block where the City/County Building is located would be a good placement. The parking authority purchased the Linssen Building on that block last year, with the intention of eventually building a parking ramp.
The cost of the study, Berg said, is about $50,000. Hopes are to have Carl Walker make a presentation to the city commission at one of its two March meetings.
Short-term (within the next 12 months) recommendations in the draft report include:
- Develop and approve a set of guiding principles for the downtown Bismarck parking system.
- Have a single department or organization responsible for managing all aspects of the parking systems.
- Improve downtown parking signage.
- Maximize on-street parking in the downtown area, where possible.
- Conduct a maintenance review of existing public parking lot spaces.
- Begin improving downtown parking enforcement, which includes adding to the parking enforcement staff, implementing a tiered parking fine structure, and improving fine collections with the goal to increase the collection rate 75 percent by the end of the first year.
- Provide adequate pedestrian paths to and from parking areas.
- Attempt to better use existing parking supplies prior to designing and constructing new parking areas.
- Select a minimum of two primary sites and two alternate sites for future parking structures.
- Develop a parking marketing program.
- Update the city parking zoning code.
There also are several mid-term (within the next two years) recommendations and long-term (three years and later).
(Reach reporter Gordon Weixel at 250-8255 or gordon.weixel@bismarcktribune.com.)
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