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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022-04-19 Parking Advisory Recommendation Committee MinutesOff. oFRra RECEIVED m' Town of Reading TOWN CLERK Meeting Minutes READING, MA. 2022 MAY 19 AM I I: 09 Board - Committee - Commission - Council: Parking Advisory & Recommendations Committee Date: 2022-04-19 Time: 7:30 PM Building: Reading Town Hall Location: Select Board Meeting Room Address: 16 Lowell Street Session: Open Session Purpose: Presentation to Select Board Version: Draft Attendees: Members - Present: Chair Bernard Horn, Chris Haley, Tom O'Connor, Karen Rose -Gillis, Elizabeth Whitelam, Dan Dewar, lay Jackson, Sarah Brukilacchio (zoom), John Weston (zoom) Members - Not Present: Others Present: Staff: Julie Mercier, Andrew MacNichol, Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Julie Mercier Topics of Discussion: The meeting was called to order at 7:35 PM Members of the PARC gave a presentation of the problem, the process, the survey results, and their proposed recommendations to the Select Board. Presenters were Mr. Haley, Mr. Horn, Ms. Whitelam, Ms. Rose -Gillis, and Mr. Weston. Ms. Gately -Herrick asked about the Hamden Yard Parking Lot and whether the dedicated police department parking was discussed. She was under the impression that the entire lot was owned by Walgreens. Ms. Whitelam clarified that the lot is mostly Town -owned and that the recommendation is to leave it as it is. Ms. McCarthy asked how the PTTTF and PARC work. Mr. Horn explained that the PTTTF is a staff group that has reviewed and given feedback on the PARC recommendations. Select Board members asked for an overview of the on -street parking versus a street -by - street break -down. Mr. Bacci asked if some of the regulations extend to Saturdays. It was noted that the signs might say Saturday but it's not clear whether enforcement happens on Saturdays. Mr. Bacci noted that proper signage will be key to this proposal, and that signage sends a message regardless of whether it's enforced. Ms. McCarthy asked how much the employee permits currently cost. Ms. Whitelam stated that they cost $260/year per permit. Ms. Gately -Herrick asked whether the employee permits are transferrable. Ms. Whitelam said that they didn't use to be, but now they are. Ms. Gately -Herrick noted that the current permit prices hearken back to an era when the Town was scrounging for every dollar it could get. Page I 1 Mr. Dockser asked if parking utilization is the same on Saturdays as it is Mondays through Friday. Mr. Bill Brown asked how the adjustment in timing for the resident -only parking coincides with the commuter rail schedule. Ms. Whitelam and Mr. Jackson noted that the schedule has changed a bit, that proposed MBTA schedule changes were under review pre-covid, and that what PARC has proposed represents a best guess. Ms. Anne Ward asked for a crosswalk on Haven Street in front of the Post Office. Mr. Maltez said he would pass the idea onto DPW. Mr. Bacci asked if the estimated payback for the kiosks included enforcement revenue. Ms. Mercier clarified that it did not. Mr. ]on Barnes asked about the enforcement consequences or penalties, wondering how much a ticket would be if someone stayed overtime. PARC members stated that specific ticket amounts were not discussed. Mr. Haley noted that the ticket would need to be more than the cost to park all day. Resident asked if there has been any thought to exempting disabled people. PARC members clarified that people with handicap hangtags or placards are not subject to paid parking or parking regulations. Mr. Brown asked if the kiosks between the lots would speak to each other. Ms. Mercier offered to look into it. Mr. Dockser commented that enforcement is key to making the system work. Mr. Maltez noted that the enforcement officer job has been budgeted full time for FY23. Mr. Bacci asked if PARC considered the idea of just putting paid parking in 1 lot as a test. Ms. Whitelam said that PARC looked at both lots individually and as a collective and each use case. She noted that downtown parking is a system, and that there is more efficiency to doing them both together. Ms. Gately -Herrick asked about the public comments received in the past few days, specifically the comments about church employee parking and the need to put out cones for funerals, etc. Ms. Whitelam clarified that it was discussed and that she does not think too many employees will take spaces near the churches when the churches need them. Mr. Tom O'Connor, spoke as a business owner and resident, noted that he is a member of PARC, but is speaking against the kiosks. He said that the addition of an enforcement officer will help move cars along and will have a substantial impact. He added that the kiosks will not drive employees out of the lot; they may just decide to pay to stay all day. He also suggested that if the Town is going to have kiosks, then to go all in and require people to pay all the time — on evenings and weekends as well. He noted that parking will become available at 4:00 since the first hour is free. Mr. Jay Jackson, member of PARC, spoke as a resident, noting that he is a transportation engineer working for the MBTA. He said he would like to speak to some of other issues PARC heard during the process, which were focused on accessibility. He asked the Select Board to fix additional things where and when possible to connect people to downtown in non -automotive ways. Mr. Brown asked if plows will wipe out the kiosks. Mr. Maltez said they won't be located in harm's way. Mr. Brown noted that parking garages are wonderful if they are maintained. When budgets get tight, the first thing that is cut is maintenance. He asked the Select Board to consider Page 1 2 this when thinking about whether to allocate any funding to a consultant study of the feasibility of a parking garage. Mr. Haley noted that if the policies and recommendations put forth by PARC do not work, then the only alternative is to build more parking. He commented that with the downtown being developed the way it is, the Town is just losing parking. He said it is important to be ready for a parking garage in the near future if needed; knowing if it is possible is critical. He noted the possible EMS accessibility issues with a parking garage in the CVS lot. He commented that building parking is an investment in the future and will open up possibilities for greater attendance at community events. Ms. McCarthy stated that she is not up on the details of the locations considered for a garage and asked if it would be limited to the CVS lot. Mr. Horn noted there are many other potential locations such as the Town/MBTA lots along the train tracks and the Brande Court Lot. He opined that the issue is the 40R District rationale - the Town wants revenue from redevelopment. He mentioned Postmark needing more parking than they provided. Ms. Whitelam clarified that the issues at Postmark are not universal and that many people who live there are just fine with the parking provided. Mr. Jackson commented that many people move to downtowns so that they can walk to the train, and opined that car storage is one of the worst ways to make use of downtown real estate. Ms. Naomi Kaufman made some points and raised some questions. She said that a parking garage analysis should be demand -driven not just a feasibility of if it can happen. She asked PARC to review the prior analyses that have been done. Ms. Sarah Brukilacchio, member of PARC, spoke as a resident. She asked everyone to remember that with the new development downtown, the twin concerns of more cars and more visitors need to be considered. She opined that in terms of the future vision for Reading, she does not see how we can allow more development without building a parking garage. Select Board hearing on downtown parking was continued to May 3rd at 7:45PM. Select Board voted to extend PARC to July 31, 2022. Ms. Whitelam moved to accept the extension to July 31, 2022. Mr. Horn seconded and the motion was approved 7-0-0. Ms. Whitelam moved to adjourn PARC at 9:06 PM. Ms. Rose -Gillis seconded and the motion was approved 7-0-0. Page 1 3