Can’t afford to drive, can’t afford to park…

While the price of gas continues to rise at local gas stations in the city (Thursday’s price at the pump checked in at 1.26 a litre at most stations) the price of just leaving your car stationary is going to rise as well.

The City has decided to implement pay parking at the Atlin Terminal parking lot in Cow bay, just one of a number of changes to our parking culture in the city. The new focus on parking comes about after the city's 30,000 dollar study conducted by a Victoria consultant group, which helped to shape the recommendations for the Task Force.

At Monday’s council meeting, a number of those recommendations were adopted and will be implemented over the next few months.

The Daily News featured the details in Wednesday’s paper.

Cow Bay parking set to hit drivers in the wallet
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Pages one and three

The city of Prince Rupert will be bringing pay-parking to the Atlin Parking Lot in the next four to six months.

The pay-parking lot will be just one change people can expect as the city moves forward with implementing the Parking Task Force Action Plan. They adopted the plan at council Monday night.

"Council was impressed with the results and work this group of citizens did in guiding the work of professionals to remove some of the recommendations that may not have been appropriate and boosting up those that were," said Prince Rupert Mayor Herb Pond.

During the next four months, people can expect to see changes in parking signage throughout the city, with signs re-oriented on a 45-degree angle so drivers can actually see them as they prepare to park. In addition new signs will be added in various places around town where signage was deemed to be confusing by the consultants, the Boulevard Transportation Group, and Parking Advisory Task Force.

"There was a recognition of a lot of signage that was not helpful. When you looked at those signs from the eyes of a newcomer, you would be hard pressed to know what to do," said Pond.
The task force recommended increased enforcement in Cow Bay and downtown. The city has two bylaw enforcement officers in its budget so this change will not include an additional cost.
During the coming year, new parking time limitations will also be brought into place: one hour in the downtown core, 15 minutes in front of the post office and a two-hour parking limit in Cow Bay.

"Those were all based on the traffic surveys that were done by the consultants. Each of those pieces will be implemented on a slightly different time frame over the next couple of months," he said.

"Staff have determined the cost some of these things, and the idea is that over time, there would be slow fixes to these things rather than going out and doing one gigantic project," said Pond.

Installing a parking meter in the Atlin parking lot - land the city was trying to sell for development last year but with little success - is expected to cover the cost of the improvements.

The parking meter is expected to bring in $40,000 to $70,000 in two years, and generate $100,000 to $280,000 in five years.

The city spent more than $30,000 on the parking study.

"I just wanted to let people know that although there is some cost associated with those items, that instituting Atlin pay-parking alone will pay for those in the first 12 to 14 months, based on projections of the task force as they watched activity and parking patterns. This is not only self-sustainable initially but revenue-generating in the future," said Coun. Sheila Gordon-Payne.
As for what the city decides to do with the parking meter funds after it pays for the changes recommended in the plan; that remains to be seen.

"Without a doubt, as we get more sources of revenue, we will have some choices to make. These could be the sources of revenue to help with the rest of the plan, or set aside to do a parking development fund," said Pond.

Funds generated from the parking meter at the Rushbrook Floats are being set aside to improve that area specifically.