Meters Just The Ticket For Downtown Council Votes, 5-1, For Return And Boosts Hourly Rate From 30 Cents To 75 Cents In Core
The meter expired Monday on free parking in downtown Spokane.
City Council members voted 5-1 to reinstall the more than 300 parking meters taken out of the downtown core three years ago - as well as to raise the rates charged for parking at the curb.
The plan is part of the Parking and Business Improvement Area, a taxing district hailed by supporters as a way to revitalize downtown by making it safer, more convenient and accessible.
“Business people have realized free parking zones, while they sounded like a good idea, haven’t worked,” Mayor Jack Geraghty said. “While this is painful, it’s necessary to achieve the goals of both downtown and the city.”
Bringing the meters back will add about $1.2 million to city revenues. About $400,000 of that will go to the parking improvement district. The balance is slated for general upkeep and other downtown improvements such as street paving and new water fountains, street lights and trees.
Councilman Chris Anderson said he supports reinstating the parking meters, but he voted against the plan after his proposal to give half of the $1.2 million to neighborhoods died for lack of support.
Hourly parking rates will increase from 30 cents to 75 cents in the core area - roughly bounded by Spokane Falls Boulevard and Sprague Avenue, Lincoln and Washington Streets. Hourly rates will rise from 30 cents to 50 cents in the outlying area.
Fifteen-minute meters will jump from 10 cents to 25 cents.
Free two-hour on-street parking no longer will be allowed downtown. That free parking will be replaced with a mix of one-hour and 100-minute paid spots.
Meters should be in place by September.
Spokane resident Don Skaufel said he supports bringing the meters back but opposes the sharp increase in rates.
“What you’re going to be doing is driving more and more people out of the downtown core,” Skaufel said. “If you’re to increase the rates, why not bump it up to 50 cents?”
Tom Powers, a downtown property owner, called bringing the meters back “active management of our downtown. That’s a good thing.”
Also Monday, the council approved:
Two contracts with the Downtown Spokane Partnership.
The first contract, for $275,044, is paid by property owners within the taxing district. While the city levies the assessments, the money will be passed to the partnership for downtown improvements.
The second contract, for $83,333, will cover the city’s portion of five months of maintenance and security. That money will come from parking meter revenues.
City spending critic George McGrath said the money would be better left in the city’s general fund than in “propping up the downtown business area.”
A voluntary severance plan for city employees.
The plan is part of a larger proposal to cut back on salaries in light of city budget problems.
City employees who have worked more than a year have the option of quitting in return for paid vacation time, with the amount they get dependent on their number of years of service.
To qualify, employees must state on an application form how their jobs might be divided among other employees or eliminated.
The application then must be approved by a supervisor.
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Graphic: No more free parking