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City presents parking study showing capacity exists but not where people expect; options include shared parking, wayfinding and selective time limits
Summary
A consultant-backed parking study presented by Community Development Director Eric Baker found roughly 2,802 stalls in the downtown and Finn-Holm study area—many off-street lots are underused while on-street downtown occupancy approaches an 85% tipping point at peak times. Staff recommended low-cost near-term actions (shared parking, wayfinding, shuttles, targeted ADA stalls) and a menu of longer-term options including time-limits or paid parking in high-demand pockets.
Eric Baker, the city’s community development director, briefed the council on a downtown and Finn-Holm parking study intended to provide data-driven options rather than a single solution.
Study findings: the study area contains about 2,802 parking spaces: approximately 538 on-street public stalls and 2,312 off-street stalls (primarily private). Peak observations (August counts on Thursdays and Saturdays) show downtown on-street occupancy approaching the consultant’s 85% threshold for constrained conditions; many off-street lots (including church and private lots) sit largely unused at peak times. New length-of-stay data indicates roughly 75% of parked vehicles stayed under two hours in observed samples.
Near-term options Baker identified include better wayfinding to underused off-street lots, shared-parking agreements with churches and private owners, targeted increases in ADA stalls, event shuttles and modest infrastructure to improve user experience. Longer-term and higher-cost options in the consultant menu include paid parking or time limits in selected high-demand blocks and, as a last resort, structured parking. Baker emphasized the study does not mandate a single approach but provides a suite of measures—some low-cost, some capital-intensive—for council consideration.
Council and members of the public asked about implementation specifics: liability or indemnity if the city asks private owners to open lots for shared use, potential impacts of time limits on multi-activity visitors (kayakers, market attendees), and safety issues at specific locations (Soundview/Harborview). Public commenters raised localized safety concerns and visibility issues around Harborview and Soundview and urged attention to safety as well as parking counts.
Staff recommended starting with low-cost, near-term measures—outreach to private owners, improved wayfinding, and targeted ADA and loading-zone clarifications—while developing cost estimates and enforcement needs for any time-limit or paid-parking proposals.
