PARKING: SURPLUSES GALORE
Parking Division Manager Del Estabrooke gave me a numerical picture of city-owned downtown parking (there is plenty of privately-owned parking, as well).
- There were 1,978 parking meters in downtown as of 9 a.m. Wednesday. Estabrooke said the number fluctuates due to construction activity. He’ll temporarily remove meters if it looks like they could be damaged.
- There are a total of 6,416 parking stalls in five garages and 17 surface lots.
- On Wednesday there were 123 30-minute meters, 116 one-hour, 833 2-hour, 560 2- or 4-hour (these meters can be programmed either way), about 100 4-hour, and about 250 10-hour.
- The meters in the 2014-15 fiscal year produced $1,087,217.
- The garages/lots produced $2,176,759.
- City workers wrote about 50,000 parking tickets.
- These tickets had a cash value of $2,270,000. The actual take from those 50,000-plus tickets can be lower (if some people never pay) or higher (if everyone pays, including those who fork over a penalty for being late).
- The Parking Division’s total revenue from 2014-15 was about $5.75 million.
- The Division’s operating expenses were about $5.3 million.
- The surplus goes into the general fund.
Estabrooke made two other key points.
First, the city does all it can to nab people who refuse to pay their parking tickets.
Estabrooke has a deal with the state Franchise Tax Board. If you file for an income tax refund but have outstanding parking tickets, Estabrooke gets paid before you do.
Estabrooke also has a deal with the Department of Motor Vehicles. You’re not getting your driver’s license or car registration until you pony up on all your unpaid parking tickets.
Second, none of the Parking Division’s annual surplus is automatically set aside for capital improvements to the garages – you know, things like making sure one of the decks doesn’t collapse.
