Fourth St Parking Ramp changesMEMORANDUM
TO:
FROM:
SUBJECT:
February 25, 2002
The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
Fourth Street Ramp Operation
In anticipation of the June 1, 2002 opening of the Fourth Street Parking Ramp,
Economic Development Director Bill Baum is recommending operational protocol,
equipment and fees for this facility. The location of this facility and expected use
indicate that service needs will be different from other City-operated parking ramps. It is
anticipated that there will be a high volume of usage that will occur well into the late
night and early morning, especially on weekends. It is also expected that there will be a
much higher volume of transient parking.
Parking fee collection would occur at the exits to the ramp (as in standard ramp
operations) Monday through Wednesday, from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., and Thursday
and Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. On Thursdays, from 5:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m., on
Friday from 5:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m., and on Saturday from 5:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m., the
cashier would be stationed at the entrance to the ramp, charging $2.00 per vehicle.
This is similar to the use of the Locust Street Ramp for Grand Opera House events,
where a charge of $1.00 per vehicle is charged upon entrance to the ramp. When the
vehicle leaves the ramp at a later time, the gate automatically goes up without any need
for further payment.
In order to accomplish this level of service, it is recommended that one additional
cashier booth be purchased for location at the Main Street entrance of the ramp, at the
cost of $18,000. Funding for this booth and for the operation of the ramp will come from
the additional revenues which will be generated by this operational protocol.
I concur with the recommendation and respectfully request Mayor and City Council
approval.
MiChael C. Van Milligen
MCVM/jjh
Attachment
cc: Steve Horman, President, Dubuque Area Chamber of Commerce
Rick Dickinson, Executive Director, Greater Dubuque Development Corporation
Dan LoBianco, Executive Director, Dubuque Main Street, Ltd.
Barry Lindahl, Corporation Counsel
Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager
William Baum, Economic Development Director
CITY OF DUBUQUE, IOWA
MEMORANDUM
February 25,2002
To:
Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
From: William Baum, Economic Development Director
Subject: Fourth Street Ramp Operation
Introduction
The purpose of this memorandum is to provide information and request action on
proposed operational protocol for the Fourth Street Ramp.
Discussion
In anticipation of the June 1, 2002 opening to the Fourth Street Ramp, the
operational protocol for this facility must be established. The location of this
facility and expected use of this facility indicate that our service needs will be
different from other City operated ramps. The Iowa Street, Locust Street and Fifth
Street ramps accommodate early morning to early evening parking. Evening and
night parking in these facilities is very limited.
in contrast, with the Fourth Street ramp, we are anticipating a high volume of
usage that will occur well into late night and early morning, especially on
weekend nights. We are also expecting a much higher volume of transient
parking due to the increased business area to be served. It would also be our
intent to provide a high level of customer service for tourists with direct
interaction, by providing information and directions to those visiting the area. In
an effort to provide a high quality service to users of this facility, I would
recommend extended cashier hours and a variance in cashier operation.
Action
recommend the operational hours for this facility as follows:
Monday through Wednesday, collect from 9:00 A.M. (potentially later depending
on morning revenues) until 9:00 P.M. (Later usage due to restaurants in area.)
Thursday and Friday operate cashiers at exits from 9:00 A.M. until 5:30 P.M. At
5:00 P.M. begin collecting as we do with the Grand Opera House events. Close
off the 4th & Iowa entrance and allow entry only off of Main Street, charging as
vehicles enter. This provides for better customer service especially with tourist
visiting the area, in that we can provide directions and community information as
they enter. Setting the closing time, would have to be adjusted as we evaluate
usage, but I am thinking somewhere around 11:00 P.M. on Thursday and 1:00
A.M. on Friday nights.
Saturday evenings, I would suggest we operate the ramp in the same mode as
with the Grand Opera House from 5:00 P.M. When we are charging as vehicles
enter, the exit gates would remain in the down position, but would be
programmed to raise as a vehicle is detected on the inside waiting to exit. This is
the key to eliminating vandalism.
Thursday, Friday and Saturday, beginning at 5:00 P.M. a $2.00 per vehicle fee
would be collected as vehicles enter the parking ramp, and exit gate arms raised
as vehicles leave without an exit fee. This would be similar to Grand Opera
House events. Cashier hours would be adjusted for special events, such as Five
Flags events or others high volume events in this area. Consistent with all ramps,
non-cashier hours would operate by way of the "night gate" option.
tn order to accomplish this level of service, we are also asking for approval for one
additional cashier booth, which would be located at the Main Street entrance to
the ramp. We are anticipating the additional facility costs to be approximately
$18,000, which would also include operational equipment for the booth. Projected
revenues generated by this operational protocol would cover the added costs
incurred.
Prepared by: Tim Horsfield, Parking System Supervisor