Council advances resident-access parking pilot to third reading after extended debate on fees and enforcement

Portsmouth City Council on May 18 held a second reading and public hearing on a proposed Resident Access Parking (RAP) pilot that would reserve certain on‑street spaces near downtown for registered Portsmouth residents and charge non-residents a fee equivalent to downtown on-street rates for the first three hours; the downtown workforce program would be charged 30 cents per hour plus a transaction fee.

Deputy City Manager Weber and the fee-study committee described the structure: non-resident on‑street RAP fees are to match the downtown first-three-hour rate; the downtown workforce rate remains 30 cents per hour (plus ParkMobile session/transaction fees). Councilors and staff walked through ParkMobile fees, wallet functionality and transaction-vs.-gateway fees. Ben (ParkMobile/vendor contact) clarified that a 35-cent transaction fee covers the session/transaction and ParkMobile’s share, while gateway credit-card fees still apply separately in some circumstances.

Councilors raised enforcement and equity concerns: how the program affects library and recreational lots, how residents without cell phones will pay and avoid tickets, whether the pilot will shift parking pressure to neighboring streets, and how many workforce program spots exist now (Director Plusher said roughly 120 daily sessions). Councilor Hopkins summarized the pilot’s evaluation goal: gather data and quarterly reports to determine whether to continue or adjust the program.

Public comment included support and concern about expansion of the downtown worker-parking subsidy. The council voted to pass second reading and hold the third and final reading on June 8; staff will return with fee‑committee reports, enforcement plans and contract/fee-contract details (including clarifying the ParkMobile wallet transaction mechanics).