10DATE:
TO:
FROM:
SUBJECT:
MEETING DATE: 10/03/11
ITEM NO: 1 n
COUNCIL/AGENCY AGENDA REPORT
September 22, 2011
MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL/
CHAIR AND MEMBERS OF THE REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY
GREG LARSON, TOWN MANAGER/EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
ACCEPT STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION THAT THE TOWN NOT IMPLEMENT A
DOWNTOWN EMPLOYEE PARKING PERMIT PROGRAM
RECOMMENDATION:
Accept staff's recommendation that the Town not implement a Downtown employee parking permit
program.
BACKGROUND:
In 2001, the Town Council adopted a Parking Management Plan (PMP) for Downtown (Attachment 1).
The PMP's main goal was to establish a framework for managing downtown parking resources.
Elements of the plan included the implementation of a parking zone concept and employee permit
parking throughout the downtown area. Although the PMP was adopted in its entirety, only a portion of
the plan was implemented. At the direction of Council, the Olive Zone has been the only zone
implemented. The implementation of all other zones and the employee permit parking program were
suspended indefinitely based on feedback from the downtown merchants, property owners, and
residents.
In 2005, staff revisited the downtown employee permit program and consulted with downtown business
and property owners, employees, and Chamber of Commerce representatives. As a result, a proposal to
implement a downtown employee permit program was presented to the Transportation and Parking
Commission (TPC). The TPC recommended implementation of a program; however, the Town Council
did not concur due to concerns expressed about the impact of employee permit parking on customer
turn -over (Attachment 2).
PREPARED BY: Jessica von Borck, Economic Vitality Manager
4
Reviewed by: f�Assistant Town Manager/Deputy Director Town Attorney/General Counsel
Finance
N:\MGR'',AdminWorkFiles\2011 Council Reports \l0-03-11 Fianl DEPPP TC report.doc
PAGE 2
MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
SUBJECT: ACCEPT STAFF'S RECOMMENDATIO THAT THE TOWN NOT IMPLEMENT A
DOWNTOWN EMPLOYEE PARKING PERMIT PROGRAM
September 22, 2011
Recently, staff received additional feedback from business owners and employees regarding parking in
the downtown. Business owners, and in some cases clients, have had to re -park their vehicles every
three hours interrupting client interaction and work flow. Police staff met individually with various
business owners and employees, who expressed a strong desire to revisit an employee permit parking
program.
In 2010, Council defined the Town's Core Values and adopted Strategic Goals. Identified as one of
those goals and categorized under the Town's "Fiscal Stability" core value was to explore ways to
maximize the availability and usage of downtown parking resources to meet the needs of customers.
DISCUSSION:
Current Conditions
In the early 1980's, the Town began an effort to develop a coordinated parking plan for the downtown to
bring together the various localized parking districts that had funded specific parking lot improvements
and to equalize parking allotments among property owners through one parking district. This effort took
a number of years as the Town, property owners, and business owners developed a program that would
be accepted by those to be assessed for the costs of the newly formed parking district. The district was
approved in 1987, and through this district a total of 417 parking spaces were added to existing parking
facilities, bringing downtown properties into compliance with the Town's parking codes. The downtown
parking lots are public and serve visitors and employees alike.
Currently, there are 11 public parking lots downtown supplying 1,116 parking spaces (Attachment 3).
There are a total of 342 parallel parking spaces dedicated along all other downtown streets: 77 spaces
along East and West Main Street from Pageant to North Santa Cruz, 18 along Montebello, 120 along
South and North Santa Cruz from Highway 17 to Highway 9, and 127 along all other side streets in the
downtown.
The public parking lots are distributed throughout the downtown and generally located directly behind
the retail spaces on the main thoroughfares. Unlimited and timed spaces are distributed within each of
the lots providing opportunities for employees and visitors to park based on needs. Overall, there are
473 timed spaces, 598 unlimited spaces, and 46 handicap spaces (Attachment 4). In June, staff
conducted a parking survey to identify how quickly spaces were being occupied (Attachment 5). On an
average weekday, unlimited spaces in lots 1, 2 and 3 (110 spaces) are taken by 10 am. Unlimited spaces
in the lower level of Lot 4 (152) are taken by noon.
Downtown Business Composition
The downtown has traditionally been defined as the Central Business District (CBD) located within the
boundary of the C-2 zone identified on the Town of Los Gatos Zoning map (Attachment 6). Within the
Downtown there are a total of 243 businesses comprised of: 20% restaurants, 47.5% retail, 18.1 %
PAGE 3
MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
SUBJECT: ACCEPT STAFF'S RECOMMENDATIO THAT THE TOWN NOT IMPLEMENT A
DOWNTOWN EMPLOYEE PARKING PERMIT PROGRAM
September 22, 2011
personal service, 14.4% office uses. These businesses bring an estimated total of 850 employees into
the Downtown on a daily basis. Restaurant, retail, and personal service uses tend to have predominately
part-time employees paid minimum wage, whereas office uses employ full-time employees and offer
competitive salaries.
Due to its business mix, the downtown has diverse user groups with different parking needs. Office
users tend to have fewer client visits and are more in need of unlimited parking for employees. Salons
have clientele with parking needs not met with 3 hour time limits; therefore they seek unlimited spaces.
In addition, salon employees also seek unlimited spaces in order to prevent interruption to their work
flow throughout the day. Restaurants and retailers rely more on high customer turn -over and heavy
pedestrian traffic flow downtown and have been more likely to support timed parking space options. In
the past, they have not been supportive of the employee permit parking program based on concerns over
parking space turn -over. Many restaurants and retailers value customer parking to the point where they
have instructed their employees to park in outer lots to preserve prime timed spaces for customers.
Best Practice Research
Staff did a comparative study of downtown employee permit parking programs from other Bay Area
communities with downtowns similar in size, business mix, and demographics. Staff identified elements
of employee permit parking programs of communities including Palo Alto, Mountain View, Menlo Park,
and Burlingame that could be applied to Los Gatos. All programs had the following common elements:
there is an annual fee ranging from $250 - $570; permits are issued only to downtown business owners
and employees; permits are issued on a calendar year and pro -rated based on application submittal date;
and a limited number of permits are issued each year.
Public Interest, Outreach, and Input
Recently, the Town received a petition signed predominately by office users in the downtown requesting
staff to implement a downtown employee permit parking program. On July 22, 2011, staff invited all
downtown property and business owners, employees, and the Chamber of Commerce to attend a focus
group to provide input on a potential downtown employee permit parking program. There were over 75
attendees with 40% representing office owners and employees, 25% property owners, 15% restaurant
owners and employees, 10% salon owners and employees, and 10% retail owners. Common themes
among all user groups were the need for better way -finding signage, more information on where
downtown public parking lots are distributed and how they are timed, and the need for a low-cost
employee permit parking program. The focus group suggested a survey be issued to all downtown user
groups.
On August 5, 2011, Town staff issued a survey to over 500 downtown users including all property
owners, businesses and their employees. The Chamber also assisted in the outreach effort distributing
information to over 900 businesses in Los Gatos. Responses were limited, with only 9 property owners,
37 employees, and 31 business owners completing the survey. Property and business owners did not
PAGE 4
MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
SUBJECT: ACCEPT STAFF'S RECOMMENDATIO THAT THE TOWN NOT IMPLEMENT A
DOWNTOWN EMPLOYEE PARKING PERMIT PROGRAM
September 22, 2011
have strong interest in an employee permit program; however employees did express a strong interest.
If there were a program, employees strongly objected to paying more than $100 for an annual permit.
Employees suggested installing metered parking along North Santa Cruz as a way to ensure turn over for
retailers and restaurants in exchange for the conversion of some timed spaces to unlimited. All user
groups strongly opposed paying more for any additional parking services such as pedi-cabs, shuttles, or
a shared bike program that would encourage use of unlimited outer lots. However, one property owner
did suggest a free valet service be provided in the center of downtown for employees and/or visitors who
choose to use the outer lots.
Transportation and Parking Commission (TPC)
Staff presented the request made by some downtown community members to implement an employee
parking permit program to the TPC in June 2011. One TPC member attended the focus groups in July.
At TPC's August meeting, they voted to hold a special meeting in September to consider an employee
parking permit program. Notice was provided to the community of the Special Meeting in September.
At the September meeting there was not a quorum due to absences and several Commission members
being required to recuse themselves. In addition, the only member from the public present was the
executive director for the Chamber of Commerce.
The three TPC members present requested to discuss the item with staff despite the lack of a quorum
(Attachment 7), and recognizing that the TPC could not convene a meeting or make a recommendation.
They believed that even though the feedback from the downtown community was limited,
implementation of a pilot downtown employee parking permit program was warranted in order to
address the concerns that were voiced by the downtown community present at the focus group meeting
in July and those expressed by petition holders. The TPC members present suggested that if a program
were to be implemented it should have the following elements:
• Pilot program: beginning January 1, 2012 and ending December 31, 2012. A year would provide
enough time to understand how a program may impact the downtown parking conditions
throughout the summer and holiday months.
• Permit Eligibility — must be a Downtown business owner or employee. Permits for customers
would not be permitted.
• Issuance Process — permits would be issued on a calendar year basis and would be pro -rated
based on the application submittal date. Permits to be issued on a "first come first served" basis.
• Permit Cost — $250 / permit (annual). This is consistent with the existing costs for employee
parking permits available in the Olive Zone.
PAGE 5
MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
SUBJECT: ACCEPT STAFF'S RECOMMENDATIO THAT THE TOWN NOT IMPLEMENT A
DOWNTOWN EMPLOYEE PARKING PERMIT PROGRAM
September 22, 2011
• Number of permits issued per year —100 would initially be released. Based on demand, the
number could increase to 200 maximum, which equates to 20% of the downtown public parking
stock.
• Designation of Spaces — employee parking permit holders would only be allowed to park in
spaces designated for permit holders. Designated spaces would be evenly distributed throughout
downtown including lots 1-7, South side, Montebello, and North side lots (as depicted in the
following table). The designated permit holder spaces would take away unlimited spaces from
the overall parking stock downtown for the term of the pilot program.
Parking
Lot
Number
Existing spaces
Proposed number of
designated employee
permit parking spaces
Total number of
non -permit
spaces remaining
96
1
119
23
2
83
16
67
3
49
9
40
4 Upper
161
32
129
4 Lower
152
30
122
5
103
20
83
6
128
25
103
South Side
16
3
13
Montebello
26
5
21
Lot 7 Park
Ave.
42
8
34
North Side
155
31
124
TOTALS
1034
200
834
CONCLUSION:
The downtown continues to be a popular destination for residents, businesses and visitors, leading to
ongoing competition for parking. Since the implementation of the PMP in 2001, the quantity of
downtown parking has increased; however, challenges remain in meeting the parking needs of the
various stakeholders. A vocal group of individuals, primarily office and salon employees, requested the
establishment of an employee permit parking program, and staff undertook a research and outreach
process to determine the level of support for such a program. Based on anecdotal information, past
experience, and the outreach process, there does not appear to be a broad consensus of downtown
stakeholders regarding implementing a downtown employee permit parking program. It is likely that
most downtown customers would not support an employee permit parking program if asked, because
such a program would remove public parking spaces from the available inventory during the day.
Although members of the Transportation and Parking Commission have suggested that the Town
undertake a pilot employee permit parking program, staff continues to recommend that the Town not
implement a program at this time. Staff does recommend that other actions be explored to enhance
awareness of parking availability, including: 1) improved signage; 2) increased education and marketing
PAGE 6
MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
SUBJECT: ACCEPT STAFF'S RECOMMENDATIO THAT THE TOWN NOT IMPLEMENT A
DOWNTOWN EMPLOYEE PARKING PERMIT PROGRAM
September 22, 2011
of Downtown parking resources; and 3) effectiveness of existing time -limit allocations in public parking
lots and along Downtown streets.
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT:
Is not a project defined under CEQA, and no further action is required.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no direct fiscal impact to not implement a Downtown employee parking permit program.
Attachments:
1. Town of Los Gatos, Downtown Parking Management Plan (2001)
2. Town Council Staff Report (2005)
3. Downtown Parking Lot Map
4. Downtown Public Lot Inventory
5. Parking Use Survey (2011)
6. Downtown Central Business District Map (C-2 Zone)
7. Transportation and Parking Commission Memorandum (9/8/2011)
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
DOWNTOWN PARKING MANAGEMENT
PLN
December 17, 2001
ATTACHMENT 1
On -Street Parking in the Downtown Commercial District
West of Pageant Street
In reviewing the operation of the Town's current on -street program, it is apparent that the
time restricted parking in the commercial area west of Pageant is ineffective because there
is not a managed system for encouraging employees to use the long term parking provided
in outlying areas. As a result, the relatively large number of visitors and employees seeking
convenient parking frequently spills over into the residential areas surrounding the
downtown. Therefore, all public streets and lots in the core downtown commercial area will
be converted to a zone system of enforcement with two (2) hour time restrictions on the
streets and three (3) hour restrictions in the lots to provide a reasonable amount of time to
shop or dine, and to encourage turnover. These parking spaces are considered prime spots
due to the fact that they are immediately adjacent and the most convenient to the core
business district.
Enhanced enforcement similar to the system used by other cities will be used as a means
to manage the on -street program. Features will include the following elements:
• Two (2) hour maximum street parking per zone between the hours 9:00 a.m. and
9:00 p.m.
• Six (6) zones have been created to facilitate this program. A vehicle may only park
once per day in a zone during the hours of enforcement
• No time restriction after 9:00 p.m. on the non-residential public streets and the public
lots
Residential permits are not valid in any public lot or on any public street outside the
designated residential zone
Days of enforcement will be six (6) days per week, except Sundays and holidays
Time limit violations for non-residential public street and public lot violations will be
S35.00
Residential permit areas will allow two (2) hour parking without a permit from 9 a.m.
to 6 p.m. and will be enforced 7 days per week
Residential time and permit violations will be S45.00
Parking spaces located in front of the Post Office on Montebello will remain 30 minutes and
will not be included in the zone enforcement.
Loading zones and short term 30 minute spaces will be distributed throughout the
downtown area and will not be included in the zone enforcement. Staff will monitor this
resource at the start of the program for compliance and any needed expansion will be
submitted for review by the Parking Commission.
(See attached map of the area —Attachment 2)
-3-
Zoned time parking in all the surface lots will use the same format as on street parking with
a few modifications:
Lots 1, 2, 3 & 6, three (3) hour time limit per zone, except with employee permit in
designated areas
Upper Lot 4, three (3) hour time limit per zone
Lower Lot 4, three (3) hour time limit per zone, except with premium employee permits
Lot 5 will be three (3) hour time limit, with no employee permits allowed
Hours of enforcement will be 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Days of enforcement six (6) days per week, except Sundays and holidays
Designated lots/spaces will allow unlimited employee permit parking
Lot 8, 90 minute time limit from 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except
holidays
The fine for all off-street time and permit violations will be 335.00
(See attached map of the affected lots that also shows the employee parking
area —Attachment 4)
Residential Zones
This plan includes three residential areas that will be referred to as the Almond Grove.
Edelen, and Eastside. The Almond Grove and Edelen areas are adjacent to the main
downtown area. The Eastside area is adjacent to Los Gatos High School. Because of the
unique factors affecting these areas, time limits and enforcement hours have been designed
to accommodate the needs of the areas.
There are a number of issues that factor into the residential component:
Six churches that are located in the downtown and residential areas
2. The proximity of the downtown to the residential area
3. Businesses located in residential areas
4. Employees parking all day in the residential neighborhoods
5. Limited on -site parking at Los Gatos High School
6. A relatively large new hotel is being built across the street from the high school
-5-
Wilder Avenue: From Bean to Bachman on both sides of the street.
Tait Avenue: From Nicholson Avenue on both sides of the street to the south property lines
of the Shell station and the Diner restaurant which are at Highway 9.
Broadway Avenue: From 25 Broadway on the south side and 30 Broadway on the north side
to Bayview Avenue. Broadway will have unique restrictions from the rest of the Almond Grove
because of a Church located in the neighborhood. The restrictions will be 2 hour parking
9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. except with residential permit on weekdays. There will be no daytime
restrictions on Saturday and Sunday to accommodate the needs of the Church. Seven (7)
days per week from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. will be by residential permit only.
Residential area known as Edelen
Two (2) hour parking 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. except by residential permit and parking by
residential permit only from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. seven days a week (unless otherwise
stated or where other parking restrictions apply).
Edelen Avenue: On both sides of the street from Miles Avenue to Bentley Avenue.
Miles Avenue: On both sides cf the street from University Avenue to the Los Gatos Creek
bridge.
Bentley Avenue: On both sides of the street from University Avenue to Edelen Avenue.
Mullen Avenue: Parking on the North side of Mullen Avenue between University Avenue to
64 Mullen Avenue will be 2 hour parking 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. with no restrictions after
9:00 p.m. From 64 Mullen to Edelen Avenue will be 2 hour parking 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
except by Residential Permit and from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. by Residential Permit only.
The 100 block of Edelen Avenue from Miles Avenue south to Mullen Avenue will remain 24
hour permit parking by residential permit only because the roadway is a dead end street with
no turn around.
East of Pageant
Residential area known as Eastside
90 minute parking 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. except by residential permit and parking by
residential permit only from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. seven days a week (unless otherwise
stated or where other parking restrictions apply).
New York Avenue: On both sides of the street from Pleasant to the beginning of Bella Vista
Avenue.
Bella Vista Avenue: On both sides of the street from New York Avenue to Charles. (No
Parking signs will be added to both sides of the road at the curve where Bella Vista meets
New York Avenue because the road is too narrow to allow safe parking).
-7-
Table of Parking Restrictions, Fines and Permit Fees
PUBLIC STREET AND PUBLIC LOT
TIME ZONES
Location
Public streets -west of Pageant
Public streets -east of Pageant
Public lots 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6
Public lot 8
Time Restrictions
2 hours per zone 9:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m. except
Sundays and holidays
90 Minute limit 7:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Monday
through Friday, except holidays
3 hours per zone 9:00 a.m. — 9:00 p.m. except
Sundays and holidays
90 Minute limit 7:00 a.m. — 4:00 p.m. except
Sundays and holidays
FINES
Violation Fee Late Fee
Timed Parking S35.00 $17.50
Residential Permit Violation S45.00 S22.50
Fraudulent use of permits S100.00 S50.00
PERMIT FEES
Permit Type Fee
Residential Permit (2 Guest permits) S25.00
Lost guest permit replacement S10.00
One (1) day guest permit S 5.00 for 1' permit, S1.00 for ea. additional
permit
Standard Employee Permit S25.00 per month or S200.00 per year
Premium Employee Permit S35.00 per month or S300.00 per year
December 19. 2901
-9-
Technical Memo to Bud Lortz and Suzanne Davis
December 10, 2001
Page 2 of 8
during the daytime, it is probable that resident parking along these streets would be significantly
affected by the increased parking demand during the construction and post -construction periods.
To adequately mitigate this impact, it would be necessary to extend the permit parking program
to daytime.
Mitigation Measure 5.4-5a. The Town should expand the parking restrictions in the Edelen
Avenue Parking Permit Area so that a permit is required to park in the Area at all times (daytime
and nighttime), and provide sufficient enforcement to ensure the effectiveness of the restrictions.
Impact Significance After Mitigation: Less than Significant."
Proposed Amendment of Mitigation Monitoring Plan
Existing Mitigation. The Mitigation Monitoring Plan (MMP) for the Old Town project
application, dated November 13, 1996, was adopted by the Town Council. On page 3 of the
MMP, the Traffic Mitigation Measure #6 reads as follows:
"The Town shall expand the parking restrictions in the Edelen Avenue Parking Permit Area."
This measure was implemented as part of the MMP pursuant to Mitigation Measure 5.4-5a in the
EIR. The MMP requires that this measure would be directed by Town Council action and
implemented by Town Building and Engineering Services prior to final occupancy. This
measure was implemented just prior to completion and occupancy of the Old Town Center
project in accordance with the MMP. At present, without a residential parking permit, parking is
prohibited at all times (24 hours per day, seven days per week) in the Edelen Avenue Parking
Permit Area, which encompasses the following streets: Edelen Avenue (entire length), Miles
Avenue (entire length), Bentley Avenue (entire length), and University Avenue (Mullen Avenue
to Los Gatos — Saratoga Road).
Proposed Change in Mitigation. In September 2001, the Town Council approved
implementation of the Parking Management Plan in concept. The Plan consists of a two-phase
program to maximize usage of existing spaces under Phase One, then increase the downtown
supply by 164 spaces under Phase Two. Phase One of the Parking Management Plan includes
the following. components:
1. Implementation of an Employee Permit Program in the core downtown public lots.
Modification of the Residential Permit Program, with two hour non -permit parking
allowed during specified hours (seven days per week) in the Almond Grove and Edelen
areas (with a unified approach to residential permits that applies the same "2-hour
parking restrictions except by permit" to all residential streets adjacent to downtown),
and 90-minute non -permit parking (seven days per week) in the East Main Street
residential area.
3. Development of unlimited long-term parking at the Park -and -Ride lot, Miles Avenue lot,
and the VerizonBus Depot/Post Office/Lot 7 area.
Technical Memo to Bud Lortz and Suzanne Davis
December 10, 2001
Page 4 of 8
Parking surveys conducted by KAKU Associates, Inc. in 2001' indicated that over 850 employee
vehicles parked downtown, with many of these parking in the prime core parking spaces.
KAKU concluded that downtown visitors are being displaced by employee parking. Parking
studies by KAKU also indicate that downtown Los Gatos needs an additional 70 to 100 spaces to
allow the design day parking conditions to operate at the national standard 85% occupancy
target. The 70 to 100-space shortfall is 200 to 280 spaces less than the predicted 300 to 350-
space shortfall that was identified in the 1996 Old Town EIR.
The lower parking shortfall estimates could be attributed to changes in parking conditions since
completion of the Old Town Center Project EIR in 1996. Since 1996, 71 additional on- and off-
street parking spaces have been developed at the end of Miles Avenue and the Miles Avenue
Lot. In addition, the Town has implemented incentive and penalty programs to encourage
employees to park in outlying parking lots rather than in the prime core downtown parking lots.
The addition of outlying parking spaces combined with the incentive/penalty programs has
helped to reduce the number of employees parking in downtown parking lots, increasing
availability of short-term parking for shoppers. Since the downtown parking shortfall estimated
by KAKU is lower than predicted in the 1996 EIR, the degree of mitigation required to reduce
project -related impacts to a less -than -significant level likewise would be less.
To address the peak parking demand that occurs during the Thanksgiving/Christmas holiday
season, the Town implemented a Holiday Parking Program in fall of 2000. This program was
initiated on October 15 and included relaxing permit parking restrictions on University Avenue,
Wilder Avenue, and Tait Avenue by allowing two-hour non -permit parking on these streets.
Signage was changed on these streets to allow two-hour non -permit parking during the day (2
a.m. to 6:30 p.m., seven days per week). Under normal conditions, non -permit parking is
prohibited on University Avenue 24 hours per day, seven days per week.
In order to evaluate parking impacts on adjacent neighborhoods, parking surveys were conducted
by the Town from October 15 to December 23, 2000.2 Survey results are summarized in Table
1. The survey indicated that during peak times when downtown parking lots (Lots 1 through 7)
were full or nearly full, overflow parking did occur on adjacent downtown streets since vehicles
were allowed to park for two hours without a permit. However, the survey indicated that during
these peak times, the number of parked vehicles did not exceed the number of available spaces
on these streets.
Since the Holiday Parking Program modified parking restrictions on University Avenue from
Mullen Avenue to Los Gatos -Saratoga Road, and this street is part of the Edelen Avenue Parking
Permit Area, parking conditions on this street during the Program are a useful indicator of future
parking conditions with the proposed amendment to Traffic Mitigation Measure #6 in the _'vLvIP.
Table 2 provides more detailed survey results for University Avenue during peak parking
' KAKU Associates, Inc., 2001. Draft Downtown Parking Management Study for Town of Los Gatos, California.
August 30.
Parking. survey data is available for review at the Town Community Development Department. The Town Traffic
Engineer, Gary Kruger at TJKM Transportation Consultants, reviewed the Town's parking survey and indicated the
data were more than adequate for the purposes of recording parking demand by time of day and by type of facility
(off street, on street and permit parking). The data show the total number of spaces by location of the facility, and
the number of parked cars between certain hours of the day such as the mid -day peak (11 a.•n. to 12 noon, etc.).
This is the standard method for quantifying existing parking demand.
Technical Memo to Bud Lortz and Suzanne Davis
December 10, 2001
Page 6 of 8
1. The Town will increase its enforcement program by increasing the number of parking
enforcement officers from three to ten officers. In addition, these officers will use
computer equipment that will allow them to record license plate numbers and track each
non -permit vehicle by license plate. Tracking each vehicle by license plate number,
rather than using the current tire chalk method, will more effectively discourage long-
term use of two-hour, non -permit spaces by employees or other long-term parkers.
The Parking Management Plan will implement a ZONE concept for parking enforcement.
The downtown area will be divided into various parking zones and vehicles without a
permit will not be allowed to re -park on the same street or in the same parking zone for
the remainder of the day. This restriction in addition to the two-hour time limit for non -
permit parking will be enforced in the residential neighborhood zones seven days per
week (8 a.m. to 12 midnight). Additional enforcement after midnight will be provided by
on -duty police by complaint and patrol measures. Vehicles with a valid residential
permit for that neighborhood zone will be allowed to park at any time with no
restrictions.
2.
Proposed modification of Traffic Mitigation Measure #6 of the M,MP combined with the
Town's additional enforcement measures would reduce potential parking impacts on the
Edelen Avenue neighborhood to a less -than -significant level.
y
76
Peak and Four -Day Average Hourly Occupancy Rates •
Parkins I ,ols 1-7 University Avenue (Between Mullen Ave. and Los Gatos -Saratoga Roacl)
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Total Occu p.
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Broadway Avenue
2 hour parking 9 AM. to 6 PM Monday thru Friday except with residential permit. From 6
PM to 9 AM by residential permit only seven days a week. No daytime restrictions on
Saturdays and Sundays
Public Streets/Non Residential - East Main Street Zone
90 Minute Parking 7 AM to 4 PM Monday through Friday except holidays and
except by designated Employee Permit
Civic Center Lot - 90 Minute Parking 7 AM to 4 PM Monday through Friday, except
holidays, and except by Town Employee Permit. (Does not include other employee permits)
Library Lot - 2 hour Parking 8 AM to 5 PM week days only (No permits valid)
Residential Preferential Permit Parking - East Main Street Residential area
90 Minute Parking 9 AM to 6 PM except by residential permit. Parking by residential
pennit only from 6 PM to 9 AM seven days a week
Los Gatos High School Permit Parking (High School Ct. and Main St. in front of High
School)
Parking by LGHS permit only from 7 AM to 4 PM Monday through Friday, except holidays
and when school is not in session (No public parking allowed)
Free Daily Long Term Parking
Park & Ride Lot, Miles Avenue Lot, Verizon/Post Office Lot (proposed parking area) and
Lot 7 on Park Avenue
Permit Designations For Other Than Residential
Employee Permit, Premium Employee Permit, Town Employee Permit and Los Gatos High
School Permit
Zone Parking
Six (6) parking zones designed to encourage parking rotation in timed limited public lots and
public street. A vehicle may only park once per day in a zone during the hours of
enforcement
Residential and Employee Parking Permit Fee Schedule
S25 annual fee per vehicle for Residential Permits
S25 monthly fee or 5200 annual fee for standard employee parking permit
S35 monthly fee or 5300 annual fee for premium employee parking permits for the lower
level of lot 4
Schedule of Fines
S35 for time limit violations on non-residential streets and public lots
S45 for residential time limit violations and permit violations
S100 for fraudulent use of permits
Enclosed is a map defining the areas that will be included in the Parking Management Plan. Copies of the
Council Report and the Downtown Parking Management Plan will be available at the Police Department after
5 PM, Friday, December 14, 2001.
Gal Pellnil Parting 11u+.ualum,SYnrf llnuiiknliul Arm)
COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
DATE: September 22, 2005
TO: MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
FROM: DEBRA J. FIGONE, TOWN MANAGER
SUBJECT:
MEETING DATE: 10/03/05
ITEM NO.
it
PARKING MANAGEMENT PROGRAM:
1) TRANSITIONS IN THE PARKING DIVISION OF THE POLICE
DEPARTMENT
2) PROVIDE DIRECTION ON THE CONCEPT OF A DOWNTOWN
EMPLOYEE PARKING PERMIT PROGRAM
RECOMMENDATION:
1) Accept status report on the transitions in the parking division of the Police department
2) Provide direction on the concept of a downtown employee parking permit program.
BACKGROUND:
The purpose of this report is to update the Council on the status of transitions in the parking division
of the Police Depailnitent and to seek Council direction on the concept of a downtown employee
parking permit program. The parking division of the Police Department has undergone transitions
and downsizing due to budget cuts in recent years. The parking coordinator position and one Parking
Control Officer (PCO) position were reduced in last year's budget. The division is now supervised
by the Traffic Sergeant with a total of three (3) Parking Control Officers.
The Parking Management Plan (PMP) adopted by Council in December 2001 is a comprehensive
plan that was developed to address the adequacy of the commercial parking supply in downtown Los
Gatos. The plan, developed by consulting firm KAKU and Associates, provide detailed analysis and
recommended measures to address parking deficiencies. The plan included three phases: 1)
implementation of a comprehensive Parking Management Plan; 2) expansion and reconfiguration
of the Verizon/Post Office lots and Lot #6; and 3) modification of the Town Code to allow certain
property owners to lease or rent approved excess parking spaces.
PREPARED BY: SCOTT R. SEAMAN
Chief of Police
(Vtot 14A4Acue....
Reviewed by: PD Assistant Town Manager Town Attorney Clerk Administrator
Finance Community Development Revised: 9/29/05 1:59 pm
Reformatted: 5/30/02
ATTACHMENT 2
PAGE 2
MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
SUBJECT:
September 22, 2005
Staff has fully implemented the Olive Zone in the civic center and high school area; added
residential permit areas, changed signs and curb markings to achieve consistency; and implemented
a way finding plan which has made parking more intuitive for customers coming into Town.
DISCUSSION:
Transition of Parking Division
Effective August 1, 2005, the parking coordinator position and one parking control officer position
were reduced. The parking division of the Police Department has been placed under the supervision
of the Traffic Sergeant. With the loss of the Parking Coordinator, the Traffic Sergeant will be
working along with the Town's Economic Vitality Manager to mitigate the loss of this critical
business connection. They will continue to build and maintain business relationships, encourage
community input, and work with the Parking and Transportation Commission on parking and traffic
issues that affect the community.
Given challenges of PCO reductions, increasing workloads and injuries, enforcement statistics and
revenue were lower than expected at the end of FY 04-05. The budgeted revenue for FY 04-05 was
$400,000. The total amount received was $390,400. In this early stage of the fiscal year, it is
unknown what the revenue projections will be for the current year. However, all 3 PCO's are back
to work full time and under new supervision, therefore enforcement is expected to increase.
Although parking enforcement is the main priority of the parking division, maintaining positive
community relationships remains a top concern.
Employee Parking Permit Program
According to the original Parking Management Plan (PMP) adopted on December 12, 2001, the
plan's main goal was to establish a framework for managing the downtown's parking resource.
Elements of the plan provided for zone concept parking and included employee permit parking
throughout the downtown area. The Olive Zone has been implemented in its entirety, and at the
direction of Council, implementation of all other zones have been suspended indefinitely.
The employee permit parking concept was approved in the original PMP. Since that time, staff has
reviewed this concept and spoken with business owners, employees and Chamber of Commerce
representatives. This proposal has also been discussed and recommended in concept by the Parking
and Transportation Commission. The concept is to provide employees with parking permits (for a
fee) that enable them to park in selected lots for unlimited time.
Preliminary discussions with the Chamber of Commerce indicate that they believe employees and
employers would support this concept. Staff has received an increase in calls from businesses
requesting the permits in the last six months. The rationale behind the employee permit program is
that it would reduce the number of employees taking up parking spaces on the street.
PAGE 3
MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
SUBJECT:
September 22, 2005
Moreover, it reduces the number of times that the most affected employees (mostly professional full
time office or retail staff) would need to move their vehicles out of timed areas. This concept could
be a business retention tool, making it easier for business owners and their employees to operate
their business without interruption.
The recommendation for employee permit parking is to start the program on January 1, 2006 and
issue no more than 200 permits. These permits would be optional for employees and would have
a cost of $35 a month or $300 annually (a savings of $120.00 over month to month purchases). If
200 permits were issued the revenue potential would be $60,000.00. There would be an off -set of
reduced revenue from citations that would have been issued for time violations, so the full revenue
potential would probably not be realized. This revenue would flow to the parking management fund,
which currently does not cover the full cost of the PMP.
The allocation of employee parking permits can be added or reduced depending upon demand.
Employee permits would be issued by the calendar year similar to residential permits which would
make it easier to enforce and track permits. The permits would be valid in any space in the municipal
lots in the downtown core area. The designated lots would be lots 1-7. (Refer to attachment 1).
Allowing random spaces to be available to permit holders would provide maximum utilization of
spaces and would eliminate the need to sign individual spaces. Unlimited parking would still be
available to the public in the existing locations and current time limits and regulations would not be
changed.
Parking capacity has been reviewed by lot counts from specific days in January, February and March
of 2005 as well as a few days in September of this year during peak days and times, mostly
Wednesday -Friday in the early afternoon. The data shows there is no clear pattern of full capacity
for any lot on a regular basis, however Lots 1, 3, 6 and Southside seem to be close to full more than
the other lots. Staff believes there is enough parking capacity to support this program.
Next steps would include continued outreach and communication with the business owners and
employees. Information about the program would be provided in the downtown business newsletter,
and Chamber newsletter, and through fliers distributed directly or mailed. The program would be
monitored and re-evaluated after implementation and revised as appropriate.
CONCLUSION:
Staff requests direction from the Town Council regarding implementation of the downtown
employee parking permit program.
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT:
This is not a project defined under CEQA, and no further action is required.
PAGE 4
MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
SUBJECT:
September 22, 2005
FISCAL IMPACT:
Revenue from the employee parking permit program is estimated at $60,000.00 a year for 200
annual permits sold. This will be offset by approximately $1,200.00 annually in expenditures for
the permits and an unknown off -set of revenue for citations that would not be issued for time
violations.
Attachments:
1) Map of downtown core
Distribution:
General
00
0
0
0
0
College Ave.
Pageant Way
0 0
•
Fiesta Way
(E.
07
0
0
0
.at„cf autdrd
r0
-
tn
0
0
fe>
CO\
•Cb'
AYI
o •
Schoo/ et
ATTACM•MIKT 1
Town Council Minutes
Redevelopment Agency
-
October 03, 2005
Los Gatos, California
7:30 PM
CLOSE VERBAL
COI\ICNICATION
7:30 PSI
PUBLIC •
HEARINGS
, None.
7:31 PM
i
OTHER BUSINESS
ITEM #11
ITEM #11
Parking Management Program
PARKING
MANAGEMENT
PROGRAM
a. Accept status report on the transition in the parking
division of the Police Department.
b. Provide direction on the concept of a downtown employee
parking permit program.
Staff report made by Alana Forest.
7:35 PM
COUNCIL
CO'\IMIENT
• Clarification regarding the location of employee parking
spaces.
• Commented on prohibiting permits for prime spaces located
adjacent to the stores.
• Commented on the specifics regarding employee parking
spaces outlined in the Kaku parking study.
• Questioned if the program could be changed to meet the needs
of the merchants throughout the implementation.
• Clarification on businesses that have private lots which meet
their customers needs, and if employees would be able to park
in front of these businesses.
• Commented that North Santa Cruz Avenue \would not be an
option for employee pelinit parking.
• Recommended staff to re -visit the Kaku Stud- for strate<zic use
of employee parking permits.
7:49 PM
OPEN/CLOSE
PUBLIC
COMMENT
None.
Page 4 of 7
\• COUNCIL :MINI TES_'005 Al i0-03-0' d,,:
Town Council Minutes
-Redevelopment Agency
October 03, 2005
Los Gatos, California
7:49 PNI gi ITEM #11
Continued
PARKING
MANAGEMENT
PROGRAM
COUNCIL
DISCUSSION
Motion by Mr. Pirzynski to not proceed N.vith the downtown employee
parking program at this time, and direct staff to monitor the parking
program during the holiday season, and re -visit the Parking Management
Plan in the spring.
Seconded by Mrs. Spector.
• Suggested that an in-depth study of the parking program would j
not be practical at this time.
7:52 PM
MAYOR CALLED
THE QUESTION
Carried unanimously.
7:53 PM
8:00 PM
ITEM #12
COUNCIL
MATTERS
DISCUSS
MORATORIL \I ON
THE DEATH
PENALTY
COUNCIL
COMMENT
OPEN PUBLIC
COMMENT
ITEM #12
Council Matters
Discuss and consider a request to support a resolution to place a
moratorium on the death penalty.
Staff report made by Debra Figone.
• Questioned publicizing an expanded public hearing for the
moratorium.
• Clarification regarding the limits relating to taking any formal
action on this item due to the fact that it was agendized under
"Council Matters."
Ms. Kreitzberg
• Commented on allocation of resources within the community
that is being spent on executions.
• Commented that application of the death penalty is racially -
biased.
• Asked that Council support the moratorium on the death
penalty.
N'COLNC\i:\U ES 2005\_NI 10-03-05_doc
Page 5 of 7
DOWNTOWN PARKING LOTS
ATTACHMENT 3
THIS PAGE
INTENTIONALLY
LEFT BLANK
Municipal and Unlimited Parking Lots
Downtown Area Timed Muni Lots
Timed Spaces
Unlimited Spaces
Handicap Spaces
Lot Totals
Lot 1
62
52
5
119
Lot 2
47
32
4
83
Lot 3
21
26
2
49
Lot 4 Upper
154
0
7
161
Lot 4 Lower
0
152
0
152
Lot 5
96
0
7
103
Lot 6
93
28
7
128
Lot 8 Alpine Ave
24
0
1
25
Lot Totals
497
290
33
820
Unlimited Muni Lots
South Side
0
15
1
16
Montebello
0
24
2
26
Lot 7 Park Ave
0
41
1
42
Miles Ave Lot & Street
0
81
1
82
North Side
0
147
8
155
Lot Totals
0
308
13
321
Total Spaces
497
598
46
1141
R Schonka
5/13/2011
ATTACHMENT 4
THIS PAGE
INTENTIONALLY
LEFT BLANK
DOWNTOWN UNLIMITED PARKING SPACE REPORT
Total # of unlimited parking spaces downtown:
Lot #1: 52 Lot #2: 32
Lot#3: 26 Lot #4 (underground): 153
Available # of unlimited parking spaces downtown during the week between 9:15 and 10:00
Friday (4/15/11) at 9:35 am
Lot #1: 0 Lot #2: 0 Lot#3: 1 Lot #4 (underground): 30
Monday (4/18/11) at 10:05 am
Lot #1: 0 Lot #2: 0 Lot#3: 0 Lot #4 (underground): 28
Tuesday (4/19/11) at 10:00 am
Lot #1: 0 Lot #2: 0 Lot#3: 0 Lot #4 (underground): 26
Wednesday (4/20/11) at 9:15 am
Lot #1: 0 Lot #2: 0 Lot#3: 18 Lot #4 (underground): 65
Thursday (4/21/11) at 9:50 am
Lot #1: 0 Lot #2: 0 Lot#3: 0 Lot #4 (underground): 40
ATTACHMENT 5
THIS PAGE
INTENTIONALLY
LEFT BLANK
Town Hall
Civic Center
E. MAIN ST.
ATTACHMENT 6
Nog Central Business District
(C-2 Zone)
0 0.035 0-07 0.14 0.21
Miles
•
THIS PAGE
INTENTIONALLY
LEFT BLANK
MEMORANDUM
Town Manager's Office
To: Transportation and Parking Commission
From: Jessica von Borck,
Economic Vitality Manager
Subject: Downtown Employee Permit Parking Program Options
Date: September 2, 2011
BACKGROUND:
In 2001, the Town Council adopted a Parking Management Plan (PMP) for Downtown (Attachment 1). The
PMP's main goal was to establish a framework for managing downtown parking resources. Elements of the
plan included the implementation of a parking zone concept and employee permit parking throughout the
downtown area. Although the PMP was adopted in its entirety, only a portion of the plan was
implemented. At the direction of Council, the Olive Zone has been the only zone implemented. The
implementation of all other zones and the employee permit parking program were suspended indefinitely
based on feedback from the downtown merchants, property owners, and residents.
In 2005, staff revisited the downtown employee permit program and consulted with downtown business
and property owners, employees, and Chamber of Commerce representatives. As a result, a proposal to
implement a downtown employee permit program was presented to the Transportation and Parking
Commission (TPC). The TPC recommended implementation of a program; however, the Town Council did
not concur due to concerns expressed about the impact of employee permit parking on customer turn-
over (Attachment 2).
Recently, staff received additional feedback from business owners and employees claiming that parking in
the downtown has become burdensome. Business owners, and in some cases clients, have had to re -park
their vehicles every three hours interrupting client interaction and work flow. Police staff met individually
with various business owners and employees and found a strong desire to revisit an employee permit
parking program.
In 2010, Council defined the Town's Core Values and adopted Strategic Goals. Identified as one of those
goals and categorized under the Town's "Fiscal Stability" core value was to explore ways to maximize the
availability and usage of downtown parking resources to meet the needs of customers.
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ATTACHMENT 7
DISCUSSION:
Current Conditions
In the early 1980's, the Town began an effort to develop a coordinated parking plan for the downtown to
bring together the various localized parking districts that had funded specific parking lot improvements and
to equalize parking allotments among property owners through one parking district. This effort took a
number of years as the Town, property owners, and business owners developed a program that would be
accepted by those to be assessed for the costs of the newly formed parking district. The district was
approved in 1987, and through this district a total of 417 parking spaces were added to existing parking
facilities, bringing downtown properties into compliance with the Town's parking codes. The downtown
parking lots are public and serve visitors and employees alike.
Currently, there are 11 public parking lots downtown supplying 1,116 parking spaces (Attachment 3).
There are a total of 342 parallel parking spaces dedicated along all other downtown streets: 77 spaces
along East and West Main Street from Pageant to North Santa Cruz, 18 along Montebello, 120 along South
and North Santa Cruz from Highway 17 to Highway 9, and 127 along all other side streets in the downtown.
The public parking lots are distributed throughout the downtown and generally located directly behind the
retail spaces on the main thoroughfares. Unlimited and timed spaces are distributed within each of the
lots providing opportunities for employees and visitors to park based on needs. Overall, there are 473
timed spaces, 598 unlimited spaces, and 46 handicap spaces (Attachment 4). In June, staff conducted a
parking survey to identify how quickly spaces were being occupied (Attachment 5). On an average
weekday, unlimited spaces in lots 1, 2 and 3 (110 spaces) are taken by 10 am. Unlimited spaces in the
lower level of Lot 4 (152) are taken by noon.
Downtown Business Composition
The downtown has traditionally been defined as the Central Business District (CBD) located within the
boundary of the C-2 zone identified on the Town of Los Gatos Zoning map (Attachment 6). Within the
Downtown there are a total of 243 businesses comprised of: 20% restaurants, 47.5% retail, 18.1% personal
service, 14.4% office uses. These businesses bring an estimated total of 850 employees into the Downtown
on a daily basis. Restaurant, retail, and personal service uses tend to have predominately part-time
employees paid minimum wage, whereas office uses employ full-time employees and offer competitive
sa laries.
Due to its business mix, the downtown has diverse user groups with different parking needs. Office users
tend to have fewer client visits and are more in need of unlimited parking for employees. Salons have
clientele with parking needs not met with 3 hour time limits; therefore they seek unlimited spaces. In
addition, salon employees also seek unlimited spaces in order to prevent interruption to their work flow
throughout the day. Restaurants and retailers rely more on high customer turn -over and heavy pedestrian
traffic flow downtown and have been more likely to support timed parking space options. In the past, they
have not been supportive of the employee permit parking program based on concerns over parking space
turn -over. Many restaurants and retailers value customer parking to the point where they have instructed
their employees to park in outer lots to preserve prime timed spaces for customers.
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Public Interest, Outreach, and Input
Recently, the Town received a petition signed predominately by office users in the downtown requesting
staff to implement a downtown employee permit parking program. On July 22, 2011, staff invited all
downtown property and business owners, employees, and the Chamber of Commerce to attend a focus
group to provide input on a potential downtown employee permit parking program. There were over 75
attendees with 40% representing office owners and employees, 25% property owners, 15% restaurant
owners and employees, 10% salon owners and employees, and 10% retail owners. Common themes
among all user groups were the need for better way -finding signage, more information on where
downtown public parking lots are distributed and how they are timed, and the need for a low-cost
employee permit parking program. The focus group suggested a survey be issued to all downtown user
groups.
On August 5, 2011, Town staff issued a survey to over 500 downtown users including all property owners,
businesses and their employees. The Chamber also assisted in the outreach effort distributing information
to over 900 businesses in Los Gatos. Responses were limited, with only 9 property owners, 37 employees,
and 31 business owners completing the survey. Property and business owners did not have strong interest
in an employee permit program; however employees did express a strong interest. If there were a
program, employees strongly objected to paying more than $100 for an annual permit. Employees
suggested installing metered parking along North Santa Cruz as a way to ensure turn over for retailers and
restaurants in exchange for the conversion of some timed spaces to unlimited. All user groups strongly
opposed paying more for any additional parking services such as pedi-cabs, shuttles, or a shared bike
program that would encourage use of unlimited outer lots. However, one property owner did suggest a
free valet service be provided in the center of downtown for employees and/or visitors who choose to use
the outer lots.
Best Practice Research
Staff did a comparative study of downtown employee permit parking programs from other Bay Area
communities with downtowns similar in size, business mix, and demographics. Staff identified elements of
employee permit parking programs of communities including Palo Alto, Mountain View, Menlo Park, and
Burlingame that could be applied to Los Gatos. All programs had the following common elements: there is
an annual fee ranging from $250 - $570; permits are issued only to downtown business owners and
employees; permits are issued on a calendar year and pro -rated based on application submittal date; and a
limited number of permits are issued each year.
Downtown Employee Permit Parking Program Options
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Based on anecdotal information, past experience, and feedback from the focus group and survey, there
does not appear to be a consensus among the downtown community regarding the desire to implement a
downtown employee permit parking program. Although there has been a vocal group of individuals,
predominately office and salon employees, that would like to see a program implemented, most have
indicated that they are not interested in paying for permits. Therefore, staff cannot support a
recommendation to implement a downtown employee permit parking program at this time.
If a broad consensus for a permit program emerges through the public process at the TPC or Town Council,
staff recommends the establishment of a Pilot program that would operate for one calendar year. This
would provide an opportunity for staff to identify any potential impacts on overall downtown parking
conditions. Following are proposed programmatic elements for consideration.
Proposed standard program elements:
Staff identified applicable concepts / elements from the best practices research and the PMP approved by
Council in 2001. The following are proposed standard program elements:
•Permit Eligibility — must be a Downtown business owner or employee. Permits for customers will
not be permitted.
•Issuance Process — Permits would be issued on a calendar year basis and would be pro -rated
based on the application submittal date.
• Permit Cost — There will be a permit fee.
•Number of permits issued per year — 200
(based on taking 20% of existing timed and unlimited spaces in prime locations: lots 1-7, South
side, Montebello, and North Side lots. There is a total of 1,034 spaces in all of these lots combined)
Permit issuance
Permits can either be issued on a "first come first served" basis or through the implementation of a lottery
system. A lottery system would require that a permit application due date be set, and through an
established computer program, permit holders would randomly be selected. Staff recommends using a
"first come first served" process as it requires less staff resources, can be more efficiently managed, and
may be more transparent to participants.
Designated permit parking areas
Staff proposes two alternative ways to designate permit holder areas within the downtown public parking
lots. One alternative would be to distribute all permit holder spaces evenly throughout downtown
including lots 1-7, South side, Montebello, and North side lots (as depicted in the following table). The
designated permit holder spaces will temporarily take away unlimited spaces from the overall parking
stock downtown. The primary goal is to reserve timed spaces to facilitate customer turn -over which the
retailers and restaurant owners have requested in the past.
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Parking Lot
Number
Existing spaces
Proposed number of
designated employee
permit parking spaces
Total number of
non -permit spaces
remaining
1
119
23
96
2
83
16
67
3
49
9
40
4 Upper
161
32
129
4 Lower
152
30
122
5
103
20
83
6
128
25
103
South Side
16
3
13
Montebello
26
5
21
Lot 7 Park
Ave.
42
8
34
North Side
155
31
124
TOTALS
1034
200
834
A second alternative would be to designate all unlimited spaces in lots 1-3 and 6 (138) and 62 unlimited
spaces in lower lot 4 as designated employee permit parking (totaling the reserved 200 permits). Staff
recommends implementing the first alternative because it distributes the designated permit holder areas
evenly throughout the downtown. This would provide a variety of parking choices throughout all public
Tots downtown with the intent to meet the needs of all user groups.
Permit fees
Currently, downtown Los Gatos does has employee permits available to business owners and employees
in the Olive Zone. This program was implemented in 2003 to address parking concerns regarding the high
school and their impacts on local businesses and residents. An annual employee parking permit in the
Olive Zone costs $240.00. Even though this price point was set eight years ago, it could be considered as a
baseline for determining a fee for the proposed pilot program. In contrast, in 2005 when staff revisited the
PMP employee permit program, an annual fee of $300 was recommended. In light of the range of $250-
570 determined by staff's best practice research and the Town's precedent of $240 for an existing
downtown employee permit parking program, a fee selected within the range would be appropriate.
Generally, there was great opposition from employees and some business owners to any fee for an
employee permit. However, it is important to consider that these are public parking lots and when a
permit is issued, it is in effect removing a parking space from the downtown public parking stock for a
period of time during the week. In addition, downtown Los Gatos is one of the few Bay Area cities that
does not charge for downtown parking either through metered spaces and/or municipal lots.
Implementation of a program would also require staff time to issue permits and monitor usage. Therefore
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it is staff's recommendation to implement a program that includes fees that recover staff administrative
costs, and reflect the value of a parking space in Downtown.
CONCLUSION
Downtown public parking is a coveted resource for Los Gatos. Managing this resource has been
challenging due to multiple user groups with a variety of needs. Since the implementation of the PMP in
2001, management of the Town's parking resources has improved. To date, there has not been a broad
consensus of downtown stakeholders regarding implementing a downtown employee permit parking
program. Therefore, as an option the TPC can choose to not recommend implementation of a program.
However, if there is a desire to explore implementation of a program, staff recommends developing a pilot
program valid for one year. This would give staff and the community an opportunity to evaluate its impact
and overall value to the downtown. The proposed program elements and alternative components are
provided to the TPC as a platform for discussion and ultimately for a recommendation to Town Council.
C: Users ivonborck AppData Local MicrosoftWindows Temporary Internet Files:Content.Outlook.OY I6OHT5 .FINAL TPC report.doc