Santa Ana council reviews parking fund options; directs staff to return with data and options in 30 days

City staff presented a parking enterprise fund work study and asked the Santa Ana City Council for input on meter and structure rates, operating hours, and program options to cover ongoing maintenance and downtown services. Executive Director Michael Garcia said the downtown parking enterprise has been operating at a deficit since 2021 and proposed options ranging from modest rate adjustments to larger increases for parking structures.

Garcia described staff recommendations including keeping most on-street meter rates at $2 per hour (and standardizing $2 across meter zones), raising parking-structure hourly rates under the city managerauthority from $1.50 to up to $3 per hour, offering the first Saturday free for Art Walk and the first hour free daily at structures to entice use, and moving some long-term unreserved monthly rates upward (example increases from $50 to $85). He said a combined option that holds meter rates steady while increasing structure rates to $3 per hour would yield a projected net of about $2.95 million for the parking enterprise; a higher-rate option could generate more.

Councilmembers debated trade-offs between generating revenue to fund elevator repairs, ADA and lighting upgrades, the downtown Clean and Safe program, and maintaining affordability for shoppers and adjacent businesses. Councilmember Hernandez urged reducing enforcement hours to end at 6 p.m. rather than 10 p.m., supported free Sundays and a free first Saturday for Art Walk, and proposed a modest meter increase to $2.50 per hour. Councilmember Becerra argued for emphasizing structures over on-street meters to encourage walking and suggested faster removal of obsolete coin meters in favor of app- or kiosk-based payments. Councilmember Fan and others asked for exemptions or different rules for part-time former employees when discussing a separate contracting/ethics ordinance; Councilmember Panalosa and others encouraged balancing downtown needs against business impacts.

Staff provided structure capacity and occupancy figures during discussion: staff said Spurgeon structure occupancy is about 64%; Birch 89% at weekends and peak times; Main Street structure about 55% with increases expected as nearby developments lease. Garcia said structure space counts are approximately Spurgeon 648 spaces, Birch 3,906 spaces and Main 3,604 spaces (these counts were stated in council discussion and should be verified).

Council direction and next steps: Council members asked staff to return with more detailed, data-driven options. The council agreed to continue the discussion at a follow-up meeting and staff confirmed the item will return in 30 days (target date referenced as March 18) with expanded analysis, occupancy peak-period breakdowns, payment-technology options (ParkMobile / QR codes / pay stations), and consideration of removing meters from specified residential neighborhoods such as Willard.

The council did not adopt a final rate package at this meeting; instead members gave staff specific guidance on hours, potential meter-to-app transitions, free-day options, and service priorities for downtown maintenance and safety.