Committee votes to advance ordinance letting SFMTA set park parking rates after lengthy public comment

Chair Matt Haney and the Budget & Finance Committee voted Sept. 22 to send an amended ordinance to the full Board of Supervisors that would allow the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency to set dynamic parking rates on certain park properties, including the Music Concourse garage and Kezar Stadium parking. The committee also approved an amended version that removes proposed new public-parking fees at the Marina Small Craft Harbor pending further outreach.

Rec & Park Deputy Director Dana Ketchum said the change would repeal fixed, inflation‑adjusted rates and allow ‘‘demand-responsive pricing’’ at the Music Concourse garage and Kezar parking, consistent with a park-code provision passed in 2009 that gave SFMTA rate-setting authority on park property. Ketchum noted the Music Concourse Garage is owned by the Music Concourse Community Partnership (MCCP) under a lease, that MCCP carries outstanding bond debt (Ketchum said more than $25,000,000), and that the lease requires any rate changes to be preapproved by MCCP to ensure debt coverage.

Members of the public and local advocates spoke overwhelmingly in favor. Parker Day, a District 3 resident, urged supervisors to ‘‘pass this ordinance today’’ so SFMTA can address apparent conflicts of interest and underuse. Several callers, including Dave Alexander and Luke Bornheimer of Kids Safe SF, described low utilization, ADA-access shortfalls, and governance concerns stemming from museum trustees’ control of the garage; multiple speakers referenced past embezzlement by a former garage CFO as part of their criticism of current governance. Jody Maderas of Walk San Francisco said dynamic rates would help prioritize people-first access in Golden Gate Park and could be used to lower prices for underserved ZIP codes.

Chair Haney moved the item to the full Board with a positive recommendation. After Rec & Park requested late edits, the committee rescinded its initial vote, approved amendments that remove proposed general marina parking fees while keeping a proposed increase to annual berth-holder pass rates, and again advanced the ordinance to the Board as amended. Deputy City Attorney Anne Pearson confirmed the marina public-parking fee changes were deleted from the amended version and the proposed increase to annual berth-holder parking passes remains.

The committee recorded however that the Music Concourse garage operates under a lease and that any final rate schedule must accommodate MCCP’s debt-coverage requirements. The ordinance also affirms the planning department’s determination under the California Environmental Quality Act.

The full Board is expected to consider the ordinance Sept. 28. The committee’s action was procedural and did not itself change garage management or transfer ownership; it authorizes SFMTA to set rates on the named park properties and directs further outreach and technical follow-up on marina fees.