City OKs parking proposals

SANDPOINT — Standards for how, where and when people could park their rides was a dominant topic of discussion Tuesdays as members of the City Council, the mayor, city officials and members of the public met at City Hall. Shelby Rognstad presented council members with a proposed parking resolution, Jennifer Stapleton explained a new Ordinance for resolving unpaid parking fines, and the Sandpoint Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee proposed standards for bicycle parking in city rights of way.

The mayor's parking plan offers residents and visitors more generous options for city parking. It calls for converting the city lots at Third Avenue and Church Street, Farmin's Landing and west of downtown to free 24-hour parking. It doubles the amount of parking allotted to those who purchase city permits and adds three-hour and four-hour free parking in areas outsde the downtown core.

"It gives great options to the workforce downtown. The city center lot, ITD lot and Sand Creek lot offer all day free parking," Rognstad said. "It’s very possible we’re going to see a reduction in permit sales. That’s part of the reason we’re extending permitted areas into the streets, to offset some of the decreased sales. We're also proposing we reduce the annual permit amount by $50 to encourage people to buy the yearly pass."

"What about those who already bought an annual pass?" asked Councilman Bill Aitken.

Shannon Syth, city treasurer, said the city would refund the difference between old and new rates.

Councilwoman Deb Ruehle and Councilman Bob Camp expressed a need for the addition of more 15-minute parking spaces to the plan. 

The council voted unanimously to adopt the mayor's parking proposal. Rognstad commented that he did not intend the plan to be permanent, and recommended establishing a parking committee to suggest changes as needed.

City Administrator Jennifer Stapleton reviewed the Scofflaw Ordinance next. She told council members that to date, $127,000 of city-issued parking tickets remain unpaid.

"Our largest offender owes the city over $10,000 in parking violations," she said.

Stapleton proposed a 60-day amnesty period for tickets unpaid for 45 days in which the city would waive half of the late fees once offenders paid the principal fines. Once police installed a boot on an offender's vehicle, the owner would have 24 hours to pay outstanding fines. After 48 hours, police would impound the vehicle.

Councilman Thomas Eddy asked whether the city needed to purchase boots for the program.

"We’re thinking we can do this with one boot. The cost of the boot is approximately $600," Stapleton said.

Council members voted unanimously to approve the ordinance.

In another parking-related agenda item, the Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee presented the council with proposed standards for bicycle parking in Sandpoint. The standards include placement for bicycle racks and guidelines for effective rack designs. They said inverted U-shaped racks, also known as bike staples, were the best choice from both a safety and a security standpoint.

Rebecca Holland, chair of the committee said the standards were "based on best practices of other bike-friendly towns. Creative designs must balance form and function, and must be recognizable for their intended purpose."

"We don’t have any guidelines on the books,” she said, stressing the need for the city to adopt some.