The Sumner City Council discussed short-term parking mitigation options July 7 after staff warned that a private lot currently used by commuters will be partially closed for soil remediation ahead of Sound Transit’s new parking garage construction.

City officials said the southern half of the former Red Apple Market site, which has been used informally for about 200 cars, will be fenced and the contractor’s work will begin under a volunteer remediation agreement with the Washington State Department of Ecology starting July 10. That change will remove roughly 80–90 spaces commuters have been using, staff said.

Council members were asked for policy direction on three staff options: take no local action and rely on Sound Transit’s mitigation plan (point commuters to Bonney Lake and Puyallup park-and-ride lots and shuttles); temporarily relax some restricted parking zone (RPZ) permits on selected streets to free curb spaces for commuters; or remove RPZ restrictions near the station entirely while construction continues. Staff warned there is no single ‘‘silver-bullet’’ solution and described operational limits on enforcement.

"We're gonna talk about [a] parking garage mitigation plan," said Ryan Windisch, Community Economic Development Director, who outlined the timeline and options and said the garage likely will not be complete until next summer at the earliest. Windisch said the private owner of the Red Apple Market block had been allowing parking but had given notice that remediation work and fencing would start after July 10.

"What they're gonna be doing is part of remediating soil contamination ... they are under a volunteer remediation agreement with the department of ecology," Windisch said.

The police chief described enforcement challenges if the city were to open curb space for commuters. "One of the two primary challenges ... is staffing resources and technology," the Police Chief said, explaining that RPZ enforcement typically requires repeated checks to prove a vehicle exceeded time limits and that automated license-plate–reading or more efficient private‑lot ticketing solutions are not currently in place.

Councilmembers raised safety and neighborhood impacts as key concerns. "I'm probably leaning towards let's do nothing for a bit and see what happens," said Councilmember Barbara [last name not specified], citing uncertainty about commuter behavior and potential safety problems on busy streets such as Thompson Street. Councilmember Reinke asked staff to confirm RPZ hours; staff replied RPZs run Monday through Friday across most of the downtown day.

Several councilmembers favored monitoring conditions and gathering public feedback before making a policy change. "Please get in touch with staff, as this develops, and let us know if there are things that we're not seeing," said Councilmember Kennett.

City staff also reported current counts at nearby park-and-ride lots. Windisch said the Bonney Lake lot had been at roughly 19% occupancy on the most recent count (67 cars of 348 spaces) and that Sound Transit’s mitigation trigger is 80% average occupancy over five weekdays. Windisch said the city does not expect the transit lots to reach that 80% threshold during the construction period but advised the council to consider options in case commuter patterns change.

Staff recommended immediate communications to commuters: an enews notice, social posts, flyers on vehicles parked on the former market site and coordination with Sound Transit. Carmen [last name not specified], a city communications staff member, said flyers would be placed on cars and that the city had posted notices online and on social media.

Council members asked staff to prioritize enforcement of timed public lots and complaint-driven enforcement for RPZs while watching where commuters relocate. City Administrator Jason [last name not specified] summarized council sentiment: focus enforcement on business parking lots, handle RPZ issues complaint‑by‑complaint, and return to the council with data and recommended next steps if problems arise.

Votes at a glance: The only formal vote taken at the start of the meeting was to excuse Councilmember Pat Cole from the session; the motion passed unanimously (yes: 6; no: 0; abstain: 0). No other formal actions or ordinance changes were taken July 7.

Councilmembers said they expect staff to report back this summer or early fall if conditions warrant further action, and staff said they plan a full downtown parking study once the new Sound Transit garage opens to reassess long-term parking policy.