Parking Commission
Regular MeetingClarksville, TN · February 24, 2022
Minutes
PARKING COMMISSION WORKSHOP MINUTES
DATE: February 24, 2022, 3:00 p.m.
MEETING LOCATION: MAYOR’S CONFERENCE ROOM, 4TH FLOOR
1 PUBLIC SQUARE
CLARKSVILLE, TN 37040
Parking Commission members present were Ryan Bowie, Andy Kean and David
Shelton
Andy Kean made a motion to accept the Minutes from the February 15th meeting,
Ryan Bowie seconded and the motion carried.
DISCUSSION
Ryan Bowie recognized Jeff Robinson. Mr. Robinson stated that parking is the
lifeblood of any brick-and-mortar business. Business owners rely on the government
to regulate parking. He advised taking plenty of time and getting input from a
variety of sources before making changes to fees, fines, or rates.
Lance Baker, City Attorney, explained that a prior administration made the decision
to restrict the authority of the new Parking Commission so they would not be
involved in making management type decisions and their role would be limited to
establishing parking regulations, setting rates, and dealing with ticket appeals.
Mr. Baker gave Commission members copies of the Advisory Board and
Commission Training and Orientation Manual as well as the City Code that
pertains to the Clarksville Parking Commission as well as parking regulations that
have been adopted by either this Parking Commission or prior Parking
Commissions or Parking Authority. He advised that Commission Members read the
entire documents. In the Parking Commission handout, he highlighted Section
1-1907, 1-1910, Appendix A. Next, he covered the City Code of Ethics and Conflict
of Interest document, highlighting section 12-4-101, 12-4-101B, 12-4-102, 6-54-107,
state law The City Private Act Charter, Article 6 Section 10 establishing an Ethics
Commission, 1-601, 1602, 1-603, 1-604, 1-605, 1-606, 1-607. He discussed the Open
Meetings Act emphasizing that you can only discuss, deliberate, and make decisions
toward parking policy in publicly noticed meetings in public. Having
communication about meeting dates in private are okay.
Mr. Baker gave an overview of the ParkMobile contract. Laurie Matta, CFO,
pointed out that this contract was the result of management decisions outside the
scope of the Parking Commission, although the Commission was made aware of the
contract in August and September of 2021.
Ms. Matta moved on to a financial overview for Parking. The Parking Commission,
by City Code and accounting rules, is an Enterprise Fund which operates as a
for-profit business, and assets only hit the financial statements through depreciation.
The City can issue debt on behalf of the Parking Commission, but the Commission
is responsible for reimbursing the city. The Commission is responsible for setting
rates appropriately to recover the payments for assets. Ms. Matta stated that it is
critically important for the Commission to understand this because the Parking
Fund has had a loss from 2014 - present, except for 2019 when there wasn’t a
Parking Manager. She mentioned that if the Commission had followed the
recommendations of studies that were done, such as the Desmond Study in 2010, we
would not be in the position we are in. She said that she had advised against offering
the First Hour Free, which was supposed to cause downtown sales to skyrocket, but
it did not have the impact it was supposed to have. She stated that these issues were
created before any of the current members were on the Parking Commission. Mr.
Kean observed that the Commission must now fix a problem they did not create.
Mr. Baker presented another option where the City Council could make the decision
to have the general taxpayer subsidize Parking. Ms. Matta agreed this is possible
but pointed out that it is a political decision that may not be popular with people
who never come downtown or people who own businesses elsewhere and pay for
their own parking.
Mr. Palmore presented 3 options for street parking:
1. Status Quo - put the IPS meters back up and offer the option to pay at
the meter (coins or credit card) or use ParkMobile.
2. Bring back analog meters and offer the option to use coins at the meter or
use ParkMobile.
3. Offer on-street parking for free (Lots and Garages would use kiosks or
ParkMobile)
Mr. Hilborn suggested keeping the IPS meters that have been upgraded and putting
the analog meters where we don’t have them now.
Mr. Bowie requested a public input session prior to making a decision about street
parking. Mr. Palmore also suggested a financial workshop prior to deciding and the
workshop was set for March 2 at 9:00 am.
Agenda
PARKING COMMISSION AGENDA
DATE: February 24, 2022
MEETING LOCATION: CITY HALL MAYOR’S CONFERENCE ROOM
ONE PUBLIC SQUARE
CLARKSVILLE, TN 37040
TIME: 3:00 P.M.
I. CALL TO ORDER
II. ANNOUNCE MEMBERS IN ATTENDANCE (VERIFY QUORUM)
• Ryan Bowie
• Andrea Herrera
• Andy Kean
• David Shelton
• Councilperson Wanda Smith
III. ADOPTION OF MINUTES: February 15, 2021
IV. GUEST(S): Public Comments (limit 5 minutes each)
Jeff Robinson
V. NEW BUSINESS
1. Lance Baker, City Attorney
a. Parking Authority vs Parking Commission
i. Parking Organizational Names
b. Powers and Duties of the Parking Commission
c. City Code of Ethics-Conflict of Interest
d. Open Meeting and Records Act
e. Parkmobile Contract Overview
2. Laurie Matta, CFO
a. Parking Financial Overview
b. Parking Proforma for Downtown Parking Options
c. Organizational Chart
3. Matt Brooker
a. Parkmoile Overview
4. Michael Palmore
a. ParkMobile Financials
b. Convenience Fees
c. ParkMobile Refunds
d. Three Parking Options
e. Public Meeting for Parking Feedback
5. Cumberland Garage Repairs
6. New Parking Garage
7. Downtown Parking Study
VI. MISCELLANEOUS DISCUSSION
VII. ADJOURNMENT
PARKING COMMISSION MINUTES
DATE: February 15, 2022
MEETING LOCATION: CROW RECREATION CENTER, MEETING ROOM
211 RICHVIEW DR.
CLARKSVILLE, TN 37043
I. CALL TO ORDER/QUORUM CHECK
The meeting was called to order by Ryan Bowie at 3:01 pm.
Members present were Andrea Herrera, David Shelton, Andy Kean and
Councilperson Smith
II. ADOPTION OF MINUTES:
January 18, 2021
Ms. Hererra made a motion to adopt. Councilperson Smith seconded and the motion
carried.
III. GUEST(S)
Mr. Jason Steen expressed concern about the increase in monthly parking fees as
well as fees charged by ParkMobile. He also expressed concern about the way these
decisions were made and how and when they were communicated to the public.
IV. DEPARTMENT REPORTS
Financial Report: The financial report was presented by Laurie Matta. YTD
expenses July 2021 to January 31, it is short $57,000 compared to the same time last
year. For the fiscal year we have collected $227,000 in the Parking Fund and the
expenses have been $184,000, which brings us to a loss of $9218.00. Month-to-month,
comparing January 2022 to January 2021, for the month we collected $34,000 in
revenue, and expenses came to $41,700 which brings us to a loss of about $14,000. Mr.
Bowie asked for clarification for the difference between January revenue 2021 vs.
January 2022. Mrs Matta highlighted the lower revenue in terms of Parking Meter
Fines as well as Cumberland Plaza leased spaces. In terms of expenses, Mrs. Matta
mentioned that we are transitioning from a contractor to an employee. Michael
Palmore mentioned that revenue was down because enforcement was light when the
garage first re-opened and ParkMobile went into effect as well as the fact that
machines are down. Mr. Palmore said we should have new kiosks installed by the end
of February or first of March.
Meter Report: Mr. Palmore stated that we have a total of 295 meters, 156 actively
working and 139 not working.
Mr. Palmore reported that additional ParkMobile signage has been ordered for
increased awareness and visibility.
Operational Changes: Mr. Palmore said based on public input, ParkMobile will
implement a notification on the app to make people aware of the hours when payment
is required for parking. Mr. Bowie asked for clarification about how the pay rates
were set in place with ParkMobile. Mr. Palmore said that he tried to match the meter
rates that were in place but ParkMobile couldn’t structure it the same way. He
apologized for not bringing options to the Parking Commission for approval. Mayor
Pitts clarified that by cCity Code, the Commission needs to vote on a rate change,
regardless of the collection mechanism; if ParkMobile can’t accommodate the rates
that have been approved by the Commission, we have to find a different way to collect
parking fees. Mr. Bowie suggested we hold a special called session to discuss rates.
Mrs. Matta added that ParkMobile was introduced as an option long before Mr.
Palmore was employed with the city and the Commission was overwhelmingly in
support of it due to the convenience it offered. She acknowledged that mistakes may
have been made but responded to this because she was responsible for Parking at the
time ParkMobile was first discussed with the Commission.
III. NEW BUSINESS
1. Parking Garage Finances, Guest: Laurie Matta, CFO
Mrs. Matta handed out a ProForma Statement of where we can expect to be
financially with a new parking garage. Projected losses for FY 2022 is
$73,000. The Parking Fund has had an operational loss since 2015. In 2023
we have to start making debt service payments on the new garage as well as
repairs on the Cumberland Garage. This will put the projected loss at
$799,000. There is not enough in the fund to cover those debt service
payments. In 2024, we will have a loss of almost a million dollars. The city
can’t support Parking, tax dollars cannot go toward parking functions. The
rates that are charged is what supports the Parking Fund. The introduction
of “first hour free” was when the Parking Fund started bleeding. Mr. Kean
invited Mrs. Matta to help the Commission investigate options and present
information, which she agreed to do.
2. Handicapped Parking Tags
A question was raised at the Town Hall meeting as to whether Disabled
Veteran plates counted as Handicapped plates. Mr. Palmore verified that
they were valid for parking anywhere downtown except for reserved spaces.
3. Rates
a. Transactions - First Hour
Mr. Palmore said ParkMobile can charge just the .35 transaction fee
for the first hour, but the city gets none of that. Mrs. Matta said with
credit card payments through kiosks or meters, the city pays the
credit card fees as determined by the card issuer. Mayor Pitts
reiterated the suggestion that we have a special called meeting. City
Attorney, Lance Baker, advised not to make any decisions about rates
or ending the relationship with ParkMobile before looking at the
contract ramifications. A motion was made by David Shelton to
suspend using ParkMobile for daily parking fees pending a legal
review, discussion with ParkMobile, and a special called session. Mr.
Kean seconded the motion and the motion carried.
b. After 5 pm and Weekends - tabled pending special called session
c. ParkMobile vs. Coins - tabled pending special called session
4. Next Town Hall Meeting - tabled pending special called session
5. No Parking Signs for Poston Street
Councilperson Smith reported that she has an Airbnb next door to her home.
There have been instances of as many as 8-9 cars at a time, belonging to
guests at the Airbnb property, taking up space on the street. It was
determined that the Street Dept. should handle this issue.
6. Curbside Spaces
Mr. Bowie said that during Covid, 15-Minute Curbside pickup spaces were
installed. However, they are routinely damaged or stolen and then it becomes
a free-for-all and people park all day for free. Mrs. Herrera made a motion
that the signs be replaced but on the side of the space where the meter is
rather than the front of the space. Mr. Bowie seconded and the motion
carried.
7. Safety
Mr. Palmore has discussed options with Tom Hutchinson of Austin Peay such
as blue lights and mobile apps. The city is looking into these options.
Councilperson Smith urged the commission to consider an option that is
pedestrian-friendly and suitable for the elderly.
8. Monthly Parking Discount Tiers
10-19 spaces - 15% discount
20-59 spaces - 25% discount
60+ spaces - 30% discount
Mrs. Herrera made a motion to adopt the new discount tiers, Councilperson
Smith seconded, and the motion carried.
V. OLD BUSINESS
a. Alternative to Duplicate Hang Tags - tabled
b. Parking Garage - discussed under New Business
VII. MISCELLANEOUS DISCUSSION
1. Mr. Shelton said he had a conversation with a City bus driver who brought
up a spot at Third and Main where there is not a parking spot, but people are
parking there and it makes it hard for the bus drivers to round the corner.
Mr. Kean questioned whether this is a temporary problem due to busses
rerouted during downtown construction. No action was taken.
VIII. VOIDING REQUESTS
170213479, 170213690, 170213442, 170213704, 170213633 - Void
503613, 170213668, 1702115052 - No action
IX. ADJOURNMENT—The meeting was adjourned at 4:31 pm.
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