Parking Meter Management Plan – On-street parking

(including City vehicle parking at meters).

1. That appropriate City staff be directed to increase and maintain a high level of general parking meter enforcement by balancing personnel levels with enforcement required.
2. That staff be further directed to increase enforcement targeted at abuse of disability privileges by ineligible individuals:
   1. Secure and utilize State of Minnesota Criminal Justice Information System (CJIS) data on disability permit holders;
   2. Establish a Disability Volunteers Assistance Program to help monitor areas of known disability permit abuse and provide notification to appropriate enforcement personnel;
   3. Expand the abilities of the new ticket writer equipment to improve the efficiency of enforcement techniques; and
   4. Passage and summary publication of the accompanying Resolution requesting that the Minnesota Department of Public Safety (MDPS) review and tighten the current policies/procedures for issuance and enforcement of disability parking certificates.
3. Effective April 1, 2003, eliminate the current practice of all-day free parking at meters by operators of vehicles with disability license plates or certificates and continue to allow free use of one and two hour limit meters by eligible individuals with appropriate disability designations, subject to a maximum limit of four hours;
4. And approval of the following staff directions:
   1. Return to the Transportation & Public Works Committee as soon as possible after financial analysis of the following two proposals: to allow eligible disabled persons to utilize the designated disability parking spaces in Municipal Parking lots and ramps, on a monthly basis, for a fee equal to 50% of the actual monthly contract rate. Regular rates would apply to non-contract short-term disability users. The city will encourage private sector parking operators to adopt a similar policy; a fee based permit process to allow a limited number of "severely disabled" individuals to obtain a special parking permit to utilize parking meters under unique circumstances for all day use;
   2. Investigate the possibility of a City role in encouraging and educating employers on their ADA requirements for "reasonable accommodations" relative to parking for their disabled employees;
   3. Determine which City ramps are best designed for use by the disabled community and address concerns about dexterity and the ticket machines;
   4. Continue negotiating with private parking ramp owners/operators for provision of discounted disability parking;
   5. Develop a plan to educate the public on existing regulations and new law changes regarding legal disability use of parking spaces at meters or in lots and ramps.
5. Increase the level of enforcement of the 30-minute limit provided for free commercial vehicle use(until noon) of the parking meters.
6. Eliminate the free use of parking meters by emergency service vehicles (unless responding to an actual incident) and city vehicles (unless by special permit);