The Downtown Business District Parking Advisory Committee was shown technology-based solutions to parking problems Wednesday, an approach expected to convert many of the free spaces downtown into metered parking.
Committee Chairwoman Elizabeth Farris said visitors value access and availability over free parking that's harder to find and often unavailable. The head of the seven-member committee the Hot Springs Board of Directors formed earlier this year to advise it on downtown parking policy, Farris said the committee has discussed increasing the number of metered spaces.
A parking inventory included in the Downtown Hot Springs Parking, Pedestrian and Bicycle Enhancement Plan the board adopted in 2016 listed 339 free spaces. The Exchange Street Parking Plaza's 245 spaces represent most of the free parking.
"I try to ask people what they think about parking," said Farris, a retired bank executive and former president of Regions Bank Hot Springs. "I was thinking we're a tourism town, and that free parking would be a good thing. But I think most people are willing to pay for parking. They just want it to be plentiful and accessible and easy to find and safe.
"That will give us a revenue stream to buy the equipment. I don't think that decision has been finalized, but it seems to me that's the way the discussion has gone. It's not about issuing parking tickets. It's making sure they can get to those spaces, and you can have ample supply for everybody."
An IPS Group sales representative showed the committee the latest advancements in parking technology Wednesday, including digital platforms directing users to open spaces and allowing them to pay electronically. Farris and Deputy City Manager Lance Spicer said coin-operated meters are no longer viable. Spicer said the city's meters were built in the 1970s and are no longer supported by the manufacturer. According to recent city budgets, they generate about $80,000 to $90,000 a year for the parking fund.
"The way the parking consumer is going you're going to want some type of technology-based approach to get you to the parking," he said. "That way you can pay for the parking in the most efficient way."
The removal of on-street parking on Central Avenue recommended by the 2016 plan drew objections. The consultant who developed the plan said converting spaces into biking and walking lanes would make storefronts more visible and accessible, clearing room for benches, landscaping and outdoor cafes that increase the length of time shoppers stay downtown. But downtown merchants objected, telling the consultant that on-street parking was vital to their businesses.
"There's two strong feelings," Farris said. "There's people who think we'd be better off putting bike lanes in, and there's people who think it would really be detrimental to stores downtown if those spots went away. No decisions have been made, but there's lots of discussions on it.
"The thing we have to overcome is you don't have to be parked right in front of the door to go someplace. When you go visit someplace, you walk a little ways."
Farris said the committee plans to hear presentations from other vendors and to survey parking policies of cities with characteristics similar to Hot Springs. It plans on presenting its findings to the board by October.
"I have no idea what that's going to look like," she said. "It's not going to be our final presentation, but we're going to try to have our arms around the fact-finding part and at least be coordinated enough to where we're moving in a direction by October."
The committee also plans to give the board its opinion on the formation of a parking authority, an independent body empowered to assess parking fees, set policy and issue debt for parking facilities. The 2016 plan recommended removing parking policy, budgeting and revenue from the purview of the board.
Local on 06/28/2019