University City studies replacing aging coin meters with Flowbird digital system

Jared Jones, communications manager for the city of University City, recommended replacing the city’s aging coin-based parking meters with a digital management system provided by Flowbird during a council study session.

Jones told the council that University City has 322 on-street meters and said 33 of those meters need replacement; he said the city’s meter fleet has been substantially affected by damages and by meters blocked by outdoor dining, and that the condition of the fleet has reduced parking revenue. “The goal is to monetize our parking infrastructure, address existing challenges, as well as enhance both user experience and revenue potential,” Jones said.

Jones presented three broad options: replace individual coin meters, adopt a mobile-payment system (examples discussed included Passport and ParkMobile), or install digital pay stations (kiosks). He gave vendor-cost figures reported to the council: Duncan Parking and POM Inc. price estimates for replacing 25 coin meters (Jones cited approximately $13,772.50 for Duncan and a similar figure for POM), Flowbird kiosks priced at about $69,600 for 12 kiosks, and a vendor package Jones called “Teleporting Solutions” at roughly $141,140 for Flowbird kiosk pay stations and an additional pay-station product. Jones also summarized Passport transaction pricing as he was given it: a 37¢ user fee per transaction, a 5¢ gateway fee and merchant processing fees Jones described as 2.9% plus an additional per-transaction charge.

Council members focused questions on enforcement, costs and access for people who do not use smartphones. Council member Plagg asked how enforcement would work and whether a digital system would reduce staff patrols; Jones said enforcement devices provided with some vendor systems would enable staff to see expiring sessions and focus enforcement on overdue vehicles rather than patrolling every space. Jones described license-plate tracking for kiosk or coin-replacement options that register plate numbers at the time of payment.

Council member Plagg also voiced hesitation about adopting a paid vendor system that University City would be among the first local users. “I’m not sure I wanna be first necessarily,” Plagg said, comparing an investment of roughly $141,000 to a no‑upfront‑cost mobile-only option.

Council member Clay and others asked how motorists without smartphones would pay. Jones said a purely mobile system would not provide a coin option, whereas Flowbird would support card, cash, contactless and mobile payments at kiosks. Council member Brunner asked whether a cost analysis had been done comparing Passport and Flowbird; Jones said he had not produced a full cost analysis because local usage patterns differ from peer cities such as Clayton, Missouri, which Jones said saw a 17% increase in parking revenue after adopting a mobile system.

No formal vote was taken. Staff said the purpose of the study-session presentation was to seek direction; Jones and city staff said if council supports moving forward they would return on a regular meeting agenda with estimated costs and a detailed implementation plan. The staff presentation and council discussion emphasized enforcement logistics, the effect of outdoor dining on meter access, and the need to account for people who do not or cannot use smartphone apps.

If the council directs staff to proceed, the next steps Jones outlined are selecting a preferred solution, removing or replacing current meters, implementing the new payment system, educating the public about payment options, and monitoring revenue and performance changes.