As cities see fewer visitors, parking revenues fall
Cities have seen a significant drop in parking fee revenue due to the coronavirus pandemic, leading to reductions in staff in some cases.
Fewer people are visiting and parking downtown because they are working at home or visiting restaurants and businesses less frequently, officials said.
“If people aren’t commuting, if people are not going back to their businesses, there is nothing I can do to promote parking,” said Debbie Pacific, director of the Danbury Parking Authority. “It’s just keeping a watchful eye on our expenses.”
The authority collected just under $39,000 this April, about a 57 percent reduction from the previous April, when it saw $91,000 in profit, she said. Other months have seen a 30 to 40 percent reduction from last year.
Five part-time staff members were temporarily laid off at the beginning of the pandemic, with full-time employees seeing a 30 to 60 percent cut in pay and hours, Pacific said.
Stamford estimates parking revenue will be down $2 million this year, said James Travers, the city’s transportation chief. In addition to decreased demand for parking, fewer meter spots are available because they are being used for outdoor dining, he said.
“There is this ripple effect that’s touching everything,” said Travers, adding revenue from previous years is expected to cover losses.
In Norwalk, revenue was 41.7 percent under budget in August, with expenses down 38.1 percent that month, according to a report from the authority.
Staffing has been reduced 39 percent through furloughs and cut hours, Kathryn R. Hebert, who retired Friday as the director transportation mobility parking.
The authority typically has a $7.3 million budget and anticipates a $2.5 million reduction in revenue due to the pandemic, she said capital reserve money will be used if necessary to cover a shortfall.
“We’re just trying to be smart and anticipating a potential loss,” Hebert said. “We wanted to make sure the parking authority was going to be able to provide those essential services to the public and the city of Norwalk.”
In New Haven, revenues this August decreased 42 percent from about $1.06 million last August to around $608,000. The Union Station Garage is averaging an 86 percent drop in occupancy from last year to this year, said Doug Hausladen, executive director of the parking authority and director of the city Department of Transportation, Traffic and Parking.
Hausladen said there are several vacancies in the Parking Authority that are keeping costs down.
“The city’s expecting a large PILOT [payment in lieu of taxes] but we’re struggling to pay our bills at the Parking Authority,” he said.
At Union Station, the Parking Authority is seeking state Department of Transportation approval to apply for CARES Act money “in order to backfill for lost revenues,” Hausladen said. “Union Station exclusively runs on parking revenues, basically,” as well as some concession rentals, he said.
The CARES Act is a $2.2 trillion federal stimulus bill passed in March to assist organizations hurt by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Rail is down 85 percent right now, so the parking garage is seeing the exact same drop,” Hausladen said. “That’s what’s being experienced by every parking operation.”
Another issue is, “we’re still seeing a lot of people not coming to office jobs downtown,” he said. While “it’s definitely busier” than in the spring, with more people coming to Yale New Haven Hospital and downtown, “we are way below last year’s actual numbers.”
In Stamford, parkers at the garages this summer could enter the code “wear a mask” into an app to earn three hours of free parking, Travers said. It was part of an effort to support local businesses, he said.
“Our business are critical to downtown, which is the reason our (parking) business is here,” he said. “Our business survives because there’s a destination to come to.”
Danbury stopped enforcing fines at the beginning of the pandemic, while Bridgeport offered free parking over part of the summer to encourage people to frequent local businesses.
Bridgeport reported in July a revenue shortage of about $68,000 for inactive meters and $230,000 for ticketing.
“The pandemic has brought on many unusual circumstances for the city as well as its restaurants and small retailers,” city spokeswoman Rowena White said in an email. “While the finance department for the city will attempt to make up these funds by controlling other expenditures – we will continue to make every effort to support our local businesses and make patronage convenient.”