It Starts Plan B

[shinblind]

Maybe the old guard city council will like the Grand Haven Plan better.  Call it Grand Haven see, Ludington do.

Copied and  pasted from a post at Grand Haven Informed. 

Paid Parking in Downtown Grand Haven will be Presented to City Council.

At the Main Street Downtown Development Authority Board meeting this morning they received a report on what paid parking would look like, if implemented. The MSDDA is an advisory board that represents the downtown merchant/building owner voice to the Grand Haven City Council.

Those in attendance unanimously approved forwarding the report and asking Grand Haven City Council to implement paid parking in Grand Haven.

What is the proposal that they recommended?

Everything contained here is what I gathered from the meeting this morning. Nothing was handed out, so if I’ve made a mistake, I apologize, but this is accurate to the best of my knowledge.

It would be enforced/paid from May 1 to September 30, 9am to 9pm. It would be $2/hr at the city beach, and all parking along Harbor Ave. It would be $1/hr everywhere else in the downtown:

-Edit to add: This would include the Municipal Marina, Chinook Pier and Farmer's Market lots too. $1/hr.

- In the public parking lots behind tip a few, Kirby, in front of harborfront building, the lots behind the 2nd and 3rd blocks, the parking lots behind JWs/Morning Star/Bookman, and the public portion of the lot between Frame and Mat/Health Hutt.

- It would also include side streets on First, Second, and Third Street between Franklin and Columbus. It would include Washington from Harbor to Third or Forth, and then mid-600 block to Eight.

There would still be a 3 hour time limit. There will be an unlimited parking pass available for $100/month. ($500 for the 5 months) this would not allow you to park overnight. There is no exemption for property owners or employees.

Payment would be via kiosk that takes cash or debit/credit card, pre-selecting how long you want to stay, if you leave early, you don't get a refund (just like a parking meter).

You could also pay via a mobile phone app and you would get up to 15 minutes free, but only via the app. Using the phone app you have to remember to also check out when you leave or the meter keeps running and you are charged.

Money raised by the parking fees would first pay for the equipment/signs/kiosks and then enforcement, after that revenue would be divided equally between public parking maintenance (resurfacing parking lots) and acquiring additional parking spaces (buying land or building a parking garage/structure). Currently the maintenance of the public parking lots is part of the general city operating budget paid for by your property taxes.

While more capital intensive would it be preferable charge for parking in the downtown and city parking lots to just charge for parking at city parks? 

[Freedom Seeker]

OH MY! That's crazy
Who would want to live in Grand Haven if you have to pay $100 a month to park on city streets? Who would want to visit? All the money goes for equipment and administration and then to buy extra parking. Buying extra parking lots is the only good I see come out of it, but that is something a city should prepare for, not fee the residents out of existence, imo. I hope Grand Havens visitor population drops so dramatically that they think of another plan. And what a group of stupid thinking DDA committee.
Thanks for the report. shinblind.

[XLFD]

This is great news for Ludington tourism, as long as we learn from what happens, but I can see dollar signs in the eyes of some from our DDA if this comes up.

It's a costly experiment that will change the dynamics of downtown, the beach and other areas and likely take a few years to recoup their investment in kiosks, equipment, maintenance and overhead costs.  Thanks for the heads up, shinblind, I'll just buy the cheap gas on US 31 as I pass through Grand Haven.

[Willy]

Why encourage people to shop where parking is free? Why create more expense for store owners who may have to pay for their employee parking? This idea is just plain greed. The parking meter killed many a prosperous downtown in Michigan cities and elsewhere. Your right FS this is crazy.

[XLFD]

Bureaucrats typically don't look at the full Petri dish before adding incompatible organisms into the ecosystem.  Interestingly, once the courts decided that chalking tires was unconstitutional, parking meters have become under consideration again by Cities for revenue.  They are not popular, they scare off customers, and yet...

Ludington may see these in the future if the "Strong Town" philosophy takes control.  Here's a recent, and not singular, article urging ST adherents to restrict and control parking more, so as to make downtowns more walkable and idyllic.  Free parking and parking minimums are often considered terrible things to have in their estimation.