Traverse City officials could shift to demand-based parking rates downtown and introduce a residential parking permit program in the next two years – two in a long list of suggestions recommended by a national transit consulting firm. Downtown Development Authority (DDA) board members discussed the firm’s findings Friday, and also reviewed two separate projects planned to improve the Boardman River area from the Union Street Dam to the Pine Street Pedestrian Bridge.

Parking Priorities
A year-long transportation demand management (TDM) study designed to analyze downtown parking needs and solutions could lead to several significant changes in the city’s parking system going forward.

Nelson Nygaard was hired last year to study both both year-round and seasonal parking in Traverse City and provide detailed recommendations for improving downtown’s existing parking systems, addressing future parking needs, and increasing pedestrian, bicycle, and mass transit options. In a summary of the firm’s findings presented to DDA board members Friday, four solutions rose to the top of a “laundry list” of things the city can do to upgrade its systems, according to DDA Executive Director Rob Bacigalupi.

“To improve your (parking) efficiency and promote TDM… there are some things that come to mind immediately that make sense,” Bacigalupi said.

Among those solutions is buying new license plate recognition and smart meter technology in 2018 that will allow the DDA to collect precise parking data to gauge demand for different parking lots and spaces and adjust meter pricing at the touch of a button. Collecting data over the next year could allow the DDA to introduce demand or “performance-based” pricing in 2019, according to Bacigalupi. Such a system would mean the city could charge more for parking in premium spots (like along Front Street) or during peak seasons and times, including potentially charging for parking past 6pm for spots near busy downtown restaurants and bars experiencing later traffic surges.

Less frequented spots and lots, or slower times of day, could conversely see lower rates under a performance-based pricing system. Nelson Nygaard recommends the city tweak its pricing to achieve a target goal of 85 percent occupancy of on-street parking and 90 percent occupancy of off-street parking. That formula ensures the parking system is well utilized but still has enough vacant spaces for drivers to find available parking, according to the firm. The system could also allow for more flexibility in timing at meters – potentially eliminating time restrictions except during peak periods, while also using escalating pricing to encourage turnover in high-demand spots.

Other solutions recommended by the TDM study include encouraging better downtown public transit – an option already under development at Bay Area Transportation Authority, which plans to introduce a downtown bus loop – and launching a city residential parking permit program. The DDA has already been exploring that possibility to better regulate parking in neighborhoods adjacent to downtown. The program would allow residents to register for permits for all of their vehicles for on-street parking, with permits also available for visiting guests. Non-residents or city employees could also park in the neighborhoods under the permit program, but those groups such would be priced at a higher rate designed to drive them into the downtown parking system instead, according to Parking Administrator Nicole VanNess. Bacigalupi said the residential permit program “could happen relatively quickly” once it goes through the city's approval process.

Boardman River Projects
DDA board members Friday also received updates on two projects set to improve areas surrounding the Boardman River from the Union Street Dam to the Pine Street Pedestrian Bridge.

Representatives from the Great Lakes Fishery Commission and design firm AECOM provided the board with an updated look at a proposed FishPass system that will convert the Union Street Dam into a bi-directional fish passage system. Plans call for constructing a linear straight channel on the north side of the Boardman River for fish-sorting, which would feature multiple gates and technologies used to pass desirable fish through the system and either deter or remove invasive species, notably sea lampreys. The south side of the river, meanwhile, would feature a more naturalized channel.

Following an October 10 public open house, project representatives further refined several aspects of the project’s design, including incorporating kayak portage landings both upstream and downstream of the dam (as well as a portage rail to make it easy to move watercraft), benches and scenic overlooks, public fishing areas, pedestrian connections to Cass Street and Hannah Park, and a research center that would also house public restrooms. Representatives noted construction of the FishPass system will eliminate the possibility of having a whitewater park at the dam site, an option previously discussed by the city. The group is set to go before the city’s planning commission for review of the project’s design in January.

Finally, construction is start this spring on extending the Boardman’s riverwalk from the South Union Street bridge to the boundary of Uptown and Riverview Terrace. As part of the project, the bridge’s deteriorating east stairwell will be reconstructed, and a barrier-free walkway built from the public parking lot behind the post office down to the river. Project management firm Gourdie Fraser is also in the process of surveying property owners along the river to gather input about two future phases of additional riverwalk extension, including from Uptown to the Pine Street Pedestrian Bridge (phase two) and from the Pine Street Pedestrian Bridge to North Union Street. The firm is expected to provide a proposed plan and cost estimates for the next two phases to the DDA this spring.