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Astoria Council reviews downtown parking code updates and enforcement modernization
Summary
City staff outlined proposed updates to the Astoria Downtown parking district code, recommended removing outdated definitions and resolving signage inconsistencies, and proposed license‑plate reader technology and online citations to improve enforcement; council asked staff to return with ordinance language, expanded maps and budget proposals.
City staff presented a package of proposed revisions to Astoria City Code sections 6.350–6.370 and recommended several administrative changes to streamline downtown parking management and enforcement. Presenter (Staff member) told the council the downtown district was established in 1988, the map was last updated in 2004 and the city’s 2019 study counted about 1,300 parking spaces in the district, with 559 time‑limited and 809 without time limits.
The staff presentation singled out three priorities: updating definitions (section 6.355) and removing an obsolete separate term “parking area,” reconciling signage and code language (section 6.360), and replacing information‑gathering requirements (section 6.365) to reflect current privacy expectations. “There’s about approximately 1,300 of of them,” Presenter (Staff member) said when summarizing the parking inventory, and staff recommended drafting ordinance language that would be informed by both the commercial C‑4 zone and the historic downtown overlay.
Council members pressed staff on scope and next steps. Several asked whether code changes should apply only to the historic downtown boundary or be written to allow restrictions outside that footprint (near the hospital or park areas). Staff said the primary focus is the downtown district but recommended council clarify whether it wants authority for restricted parking outside the district; the council generally asked staff to return with expanded boundary options and stakeholder engagement plans.
Chief Kelly presented enforcement data and a technology proposal to improve operational efficiency. He reported 393 parking citations in 2024 and 964 in 2025, described a license‑plate reader (LPR) system that captures plate plus valve‑stem images for two‑hour enforcement validation, and estimated first‑year costs at about $60,000 and $2,000–$4,000 annually thereafter. “It’s actually [a] license plate reader that as he drives down the road, it takes pictures of not only the car, but the tire and the valve stem,” Chief Kelly said, arguing the system would substantially reduce staff workload and automate citation printing.
Staff said they will include a modernization proposal in next year’s budget process and will return with proposed ordinance language and one or more enlarged map options for council review. Council agreed to take up scheduling and next steps at the Feb. 23 meeting and to hold a work session to discuss strategic principles for parking policy before finalizing code changes.
