Title
Discussion of Staff Recommended Revisions to the San Leandro Municipal Code to Clarify No Re-parking Provisions and to Eliminate the Residential Parking Permit Program
Staffreport
RECOMMENDATIONS
Staff recommend that the City Council Rules Committee consider and recommend to the City Council revisions to the San Leandro Municipal Code (SLMC) to clarify no re-parking provisions and eliminate the Residential Parking Permit Program.
BACKGROUND & ANALYSIS
No Re-parking
In 2018, the City Council adopted the Downtown Parking Management Plan, which included parking space occupancy turnover objectives and the implementation of a ‘no re-parking’ ordinance that would apply to all time-limited parking. The purpose of this objective is to support the turnover of parking stalls in the downtown area as a means of ensuring their availability to the public and to support downtown businesses. The San Leandro Municipal Code (SLMC) was revised to add a provision that vehicles are required to move at least one-tenth of a mile in time restricted zones to avoid a no re-parking citation.
To facilitate communication and enforcement of the no re-parking ordinance, the third-party parking enforcement team is enforcing the time restrictions by zone, such as in the Bancroft/Dutton area and the Best Building parking lot. Staff proposes revisions to SLMC 6-2-810 to reflect this practice of enforcing no re-parking by zone. The Downtown has been organized into 16 zones, each of which is approximately 1-2 blocks and less than one-tenth of a mile in length. In paid parking areas, the zone is indicated by the ParkMobile zone number on the meter or sign. In the enforced time-restricted areas, the zone is indicated on the parking enforcement sign.
This action is recommended to facilitate communication, understanding and implementation of the no re-parking ordinance.
Residential Parking Permit Program
The Residential Parking Permit (RPP) Program was established in 2003 to enable residents to park unlimited hours within time restricted areas; three zones were adopted by City Council Resolution. Two of the zones were dissolved within three years of adoption due to lack of participation. The remaining RPP regulations on McKinley Court continued to operate until 2021, when participation fell below the minimum threshold for continued operation. The program has been dormant since that time and the City has not received any subsequent applications from residents for prospective RPP zones.
The City’s 2022 consultant services agreement with Dixon Resources Unlimited for Parking Management Services identified a review of the Residential Parking Permit Program as a task to optimize the City’s parking program. A thorough analysis of the program brought to light concerns that the program benefits very few residents and is expensive to establish and operate. The startup costs are $10,000 or more for Public Works staff to complete the required analysis, develop recommendations and bring the recommendations to the Planning Commission and City Council. Effective enforcement of the program is also challenging since the City’s contract parking enforcement services are focused on the Downtown area and are only provided Monday - Saturday 9am - 6pm. As a result, the Police Department bears the burden of conducting enforcement of the residential parking program along with the associated costs of such enforcement. Given ongoing Citywide budgetary deficits, staff’s assessment is that there are higher priority projects for Public Works and Police staff such that it is recommended to eliminate the program at this time.
ATTACHMENTS:
• Attachment A: SLMC 6-1-810 Obstruction of Enforcement
• Attachment B: SLMC Chapter 6-2 Article 3 Residential Parking Permit Program
• Attachment C: Presentation
PREPARED BY: Cynthia Battenberg, Special Projects; Eric Engelbart, Deputy City Manager