City of Riverside Parking Rates and Hours Revisions

UPDATE: At the 04/18/2023 Council Meeting the City Council unanimously approved the proposed Parking Rates and Hours Schedule. Thank you to everyone who participated in the process to help us succeed in developing parking rates and hours that will best serve our Riverside community. Next step: Additional education and outreach, with implementation of the new rates and hours on 7/1/2023. Visit our permanent webpage for information and future updates:  Home | Park Riverside (parkatriverside.com) 

In order to address key needs including maintenance, security patrols, lighting, technology, and signage, the City of Riverside approved a set of parking rates and hours which took effect on July 1, 2022. As the new rates began to roll out, the community expressed concern regarding new expenses and changes to parking operations. Following deliberation on July 19, 2022 the Riverside City Council decided to rescind the February 15th parking rates and hours. Council requested that staff engage with the community and return to the City Council within to adopt a new rates and hours schedules.

We need your help and input to select new parking rates and hours! Your critical input will help balance the needs of the community with the ability for the Public Parking Fund to reach long-term financial solvency. The City of Riverside's Parking Fund is considered an "Enterprise Fund," this means that all the expenses associated with the parking program should be covered solely through revenues generated by the parking program.

1. Security within parking garages 2. Maintenance and rennovation of parking garages, lots, and parking equipment 3. Installation of wayfinding signage, electronic parking equipment such as meters and gates 4. Construction of new parking facilities 5. Enforcement and administration of parking violations 6. Discounted monthly parking passes, validation booklets, and meter tokens 7. Free parking during specific times of day or for specific durations at some locations 8. Management of parking facilities and tenant spaces 9. Special event parking discounts 10. Response to parking facility or parking enforcement Service Requests

1. Fees at on-street parking meters, parking lots, and parking garages*
2. Parking fines
3. Tenant leases *Revenues collected for parking fees will change dependent on the demand for each facility, and depending on the hours of available free parking for motorists.

As previously noted, the Parking Fund is considered an Enterprise Fund, meaning its revenues should cover its expenses. The Parking Fund should operate in a manner similar to private business enterprises, where the intent is that costs of providing services to the general public on a continual basis be financed and recovered primarily through user charges. In addition, the fund should generate sufficient revenue to pay for future capital investment into the parking ecosystem.  Setting fees at a rate less than the cost to provide services will require subsidization from the City’s general fund and will result in insufficient funding to maintain the operational and capital requirements of the activity. A brief explanatory video of how the Parking Fund operates is included below, and will help prepare you to provide YOUR input regarding the Parking Fund!

During the initial stage of community engagement the City made use of the "Balancing Act" software. The software allowed users to make decisions regarding the expenditures and revenues for the Riverside Parking Fund. Participants played an active role in proposing a balanced budget - which is critical for an enterprise fund. Portions of the budget were simplified to facilitate engagement. The objective of this exercise was to understand the community's priorities and preferences in broad strokes.

A new shorter survey was subsequently posted to refine the input already provided through Balancing Act. [UPDATE: The Survey has been taken offline per the published schedule]

The next opportunity to provide input will be at the March 2023 Land Use, Sustainability and Resilience Committee, which will occur on March 13th.

Thank you to all who have engaged with us regarding the parking rates and hours schedule! In total, 1,861 submittals were received through the Balancing act tool. The average participant spent a total of 9 minutes and 10 seconds in developing survey responses. The average survey participant chose to increase expenditures related to deferred maintenance by $900,000. Participants have additionally chosen (on average) to reduce the fund's reliance on meter revenues while choosing to increase rates in the parking garages.

Many survey comments suggested that parking should be provided for free. Commenters have additionally expressed a preference that parking should be subsidized using alternative revenue sources; while this is not compatible with the Parking Fund's operation as an enterprise fund, staff have committed to sharing this feedback alongside recommended amendments to the parking rates and hours schedule.

If you would like to receive updates regarding the City's adoption of the amended parking rates and hour schedule, please email Parking@riversideca.gov to be placed on our contact list, or call 951-826-5620