Council opens public hearing and orders assessment roll to fund downtown meterless parking system

Jackson City Council opened a public hearing Sept. 16 on a proposed assessment to fund a meterless parking system for downtown Jackson and subsequently approved a resolution ordering preparation of an assessment roll to fund the program.

The hearing drew downtown business owners and residents who largely urged the council to keep meterless parking. John King, a city resident, said he favored meterless parking and wanted it to remain in place long term. John Dennis, representing the Grotto Temple Association, thanked council for last year’s vote to remove meters and said the association’s clientele would have been hurt by metered parking. Kevin Thompson, representing Jackson Downtown Partners, said the program works but asked for an explanation of a large projected increase in operating costs: “the costs associated with the meterless parking totaled… $113,155. The projected cost for this next year is $238,375… that’s a tremendous increase,” Thompson said.

City staff answered that the meterless parking fund cycles revenue back into maintenance and capital repairs for parking lots and related services. Jonathan Green, city staff, said work planned this year explains the carryover and the larger spend in the coming budget cycle, and noted plowing costs are a major recurring expense: “plow is about $90,000 a year,” he said.

Council action: following public comment the council moved to “order the preparation of an assessment roll to fund the meterless parking system.” The motion carried unanimously; the clerk recorded the item as passed. The action authorizes staff to prepare an assessment roll so that property and business assessments can be calculated and presented for further council approval.

Why it matters: meterless parking affects downtown accessibility, business customers (many speakers said their clients are elderly), and the DDA’s and city’s downtown maintenance and capital budgets. Speakers also asked for transparency on how assessment increases are calculated and how revenues are spent; staff said details would be provided through the DDA and city budgeting processes.

Next steps: staff said they will provide documentation supporting the projected cost increase and return with an assessment roll. Council did not set assessment amounts at the Sept. 16 meeting; the current vote authorizes staff to compute and present a formal assessment roll for future action.