Parking Commission

PARKING COMMISSION MINUTES DATE: May 21, 2019 MEETING LOCATION: MAYOR’S CONFERENCE ROOM CITY HALL, 1 PUBLIC SQUARE CLARKSVILLE, TN. 37040 I. CALL TO ORDER/QUORUM CHECK The meeting was called to order by Allen Senseney at 3:01 p.m. Members present were Linda Shephard, Carol Clark, Ryan Bowie, and Allen Senseney. Mr. Senseney welcomed Ryan Bowie as a new board member. II. ADOPTION OF MINUTES: April 16, 2019 Allen Senseney made a motion to adopt the minutes, Carol Clark seconded; all board members approved. III. GUEST(S) James Weatherford—Judi Bradbury stated that everyone had his statement in front of them. He asked to attend meeting to appeal a ticket. Mr. Weatherford is a reserve deputy with Montgomery County Sheriff. He showed parking enforcement his orange hangtag and asked where he was allowed to park. He states he was told he could park anywhere he wanted in the lot next to the Sheriff’s department. He received a ticket. Mr. Weatherford came into the office and told a clerk the situation—they took copies of everything and told him not to pay it—that it would be taken care of. Mr. Weatherford then received a notice in the mail. He called and completed a voiding request and decided to attend the meeting in case the commission had any questions. Members and Mrs. Bradbury asked further clarifying questions of Mr. Weatherford. Farid Rostampour—owner of Hot Pita. Mr. Rostampour stated that he has been in business for 18-19 months. Over the past 12 months, the delivery business has increased. Not having parking for employees to be able to park for delivery purposes is an issue. Mr. Rostampour would like to pay for the 2 spots directly in front of Hot Pita—he is willing to pay for signs/cones. He would need the spots from 10 am – 3 pm. Mr. Senseney stated that it would be discussed further during this meeting. IV. DEPARTMENT REPORT Financial Report: The financial statement was provided by Laurie Matta outlining the month of March. Revenues are up about $14,765 since last year due to downtown meters revenue and meter tickets. Our expenses are down by $119,000 due to wages and repairs and maintenance not occurring. You will see some increase in that in the month of April. For the month of March, we are $12,000 to the good, including depreciation. This is due to the low salary expenses. Revenues are down $8,000 as compared to last year; and expenses are down $20,000. Linda Shephard asked for an explanation of the rental application fee— Judi Bradbury responded that this is actually Obstruction Application Fee. Ms. Matta said she will update report to reflect that. Smart Meter Report: Last month we had 33% of our inventory working; for the month of March we had 57% working. IPS came out and trained with Bryce for 4 full days. They  went through every meter—troubleshooting—suggested different parts that we need. We sent back 43 meters to be refurbished and 2 of the dome sensors. This is about a 6 week turn around. IPS sent epoxy so we can drill up sensors that we have in the ground that are not working. Mr. Senseney noted that credit card is the main form of payment that we accept. 51% of all the payments we receive are credit cards. Judi asked if the Commission wanted this info monthly—it was noted that we just needed this info for now and not necessarily on a regular basis. Carol Clark noted it was good to know when looking at new equipment. Credit card fees were questioned—Ms. Matta said it depends on the card. Mr. Senseney questioned why March revenues are down—assuming it was due to the number of meters working. Judi responded that the meter inventory is an issue, but also we are caught up to that timeframe where the rate increase took effect. It should level out now. Mrs. Clark asked when the rate increase took effect—April of last year. V. NEW BUSINESS Transit Garage Closure-- Regina Hampton reported that April 29th there will be no parking in the Transit Garage. The letter that was sent to all of our customers was included in the Parking Commission packets. The construction doesn’t impact the garage aesthetically—it’s more for the structure and integrity of the garage. We have told everyone this should take 60 days—which is on the high end. We have given everyone the option to relocate to Cumberland Garage or Main Street Lot (Regional Planning Commission) and we are giving credits or refunds because of the different rates. Mr. Senseney noted that we just paid the Transit Garage off. Regina clarified this construction is mainly to the Transit Center and will be doing some X-rays to look at beams and the structure. Some of the renovations could help the leaking—but that’s not the purpose of this construction. Ms. Matta said that Transit will be operating out of the Downtown Commons building; Legion Street will be closed off to traffic. The press release will go out today. Mrs. Shephard asked when this work would start—Regina said notice to proceed started on April 15th, but not sure when work would actually start. Blocking Mailbox Violation—Regina said this is in response to the postal service complaining that they could not deliver mail on St. Johns Street. New language was included in the packet—this language was not included in code so this couldn’t be enforced with a ticket. We felt like it needed to be brought before the Commission. Mr. Senseney asked if this was something they can do. Ms. Matta responded that the Commission can vote to add language and set rates and it doesn’t have to go to Council. Mrs. Shephard asked if we are talking about mailboxes on the street. We would give warnings first. Ms. Matta clarified where the violations are in City Code. It was voted to table this until we could identify if other jurisdictions do this. New Employee—Regina reported that we hired part time enforcement officer Jesseca Monck. This fills all of our positions except Parking Manager. VI. OLD BUSINESS First hour free parking program—Carol Clark moved to defer to next meeting. Allen Senseney seconded; all board members approved. Maintenance of meters and lots—Customers have voiced concerns about debris and cleanliness. We’ve made a plan to clean up and maintenance. Outsourced cleaning; landscaping has been completed. Linda Shephard asked about trash cans being put in Roxy. Regina Hampton responded that we are looking at installing trash cans in all lots. VII. MISCELLANEOUS DISCUSSION  Brackets in parking spaces-specifically the one by the drive thru at the bank. This one has been painted. Worked with Chris Cowan to install a No Parking sign by Regions Bank. VIII. VOIDING REQUESTS No action taken on citations 170106870, 170107051, 170107103, 50103, 501534, 170106991, 170106990, 170106981, 170106981, 170106875 Voided- 170106470, 170106246 170106751--tabled 170107027--tabled IX. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 3:41 pm.