Advisory Parking Committee hears update on in‑house parking operations after year under city control

The Advisory Parking Committee voted to approve the meeting minutes and then heard a multi-part update on parking operations from city staff, who said the parking system has completed its first full year under direct city control after the contract with SP Plus ended.

The city has moved monthly‑parking operations onto a new platform and collects monthly payments directly. “Everything goes through the parking department,” Aaron, a parking department staff member, said during the presentation, describing a new monthly‑parking portal and a software package used for invoicing and payments.

Why it matters: Bringing monthly sales and payments in‑house affects revenue timing, customer service and operating costs. Committee members asked for financial forecasts and more data to understand whether the parking fund can support near‑term capital work.

City control and customer support City staff said the department now uses a monthly‑parking software (referred to in the presentation as Zafire) that allows online signups and wait‑list management; previously customers had to call a third‑party office. During weekday business hours (8 a.m.–5 p.m.) kiosk help calls go to the local parking office inside Chester Garage; off‑hours calls go to Parker Technology, a parking‑specialist call center in Indianapolis. Staff said Parker Technology is on a flat rate for 400 calls with an overage fee and that call volumes often exceed 400 calls; staff reported a high month of about 1,500 calls and a recent month around 700 calls.

Staffing, revenue and operating costs The presentation said SP Plus had a staff of 14 supporting the system; the city currently budgets 14 positions but employs 12 in the parking department. Two meter‑maintenance staff moved from the police department into parking operations; two former SP Plus workers transitioned and one additional employee who transitioned did not remain with the city. Staff said many operating categories have shifted from being billed through SP Plus to city expense lines (uniforms, supplies, contractual services and credit‑card fees), and that, comparing like‑for‑like items, operating expenses are lower year to date under city control.

Capital needs and garage condition Staff provided a five‑year financial forecast and said capital expenditures will dominate the fund balance in the near term. Known project amounts cited in the presentation included approximately $5,000,000 for ongoing Chester Garage work in the current year and placeholders such as $1,000,000 for elevator modernization in a later year; staff stressed placeholders reflect incomplete bids and that final budgets remain to be determined as BCT (the design consultant) completes designs.

Committee members noted the average age of the city's five garages is about 50 years and urged an updated engineering assessment (WJE was named in the discussion) to refine cost estimates and maintenance pacing. Staff said BCT’s design work will include electrical (MEP) upgrades intended to support a minimum of roughly 20 EV chargers per garage as designs are finalized and utilities evaluated with DTE.

Security cameras The parking department is coordinating with the police department to install cloud‑recording security cameras; staff said the garage cameras now record and that installation is nearly complete. Committee members asked whether signage notifying the public of recording will be posted; staff said they would coordinate with communications and legal to determine wording and placement.

Procedure and next steps The committee asked staff to provide more complete financial reporting and clearer CapEx estimates once design work is finalized. Staff said they will continue to present updates as BCT advances designs and as the department refines budgets and reporting cadence.

Ending: The committee scheduled its next meeting for March 12 and adjourned.