Cities see fewer people parking downtown during pandemic
Stamford estimates parking revenue will be down $2M this year
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.”
Supporting local businesses
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.”
Norwalk did not charge fees from the beginning of the pandemic until the state’s phase one reopening. Some fees were reduced over the summer.
With fewer cars in the garages, Stamford has tried to clean or paint the facilities more, Travers said. Electronic vehicle charging stations were upgraded.
“We also wanted to make sure we use this opportunity to do some of the maintenance of the garages that makes it more welcoming for people to come back,” Travers said.
But budgetary constraints have pushed off some projects, such as installing a layer on the top floor to prevent water leak
age, were postponed, he said.
Stamford has not needed to cut hours or staff, but for some time parking enforcement staff were sent to beaches and parks to ensure social distancing, Travers said. Open positions have not been filled.
The New Haven Parking Authority does offer free parking at the Temple Street, Crown Street and State Street garages, as well as the parking lot at Orange and Elm streets, for people who eat at participating restaurants downtown.
The Shops at Yale also offer two hours of free parking in the lots on Broadway, 255 Crown St. and 161 York St. with a $25 purchase from a participating restaurant or store.
Challenges for Danbury
In Danbury, hours at the garages were reduced due to decreased demand.
“That takes a hit on some of our tenants,” Pacific said. “They’re living downtown. They rely on our services, but we have to tell them we can’t open until this time. We have to close at this time.”
Pacific said her goal is to ensure her staff continue to receive benefits.
The authority was not eligible for the federal paycheck protection program because it is a quasi municipal agency, but was accepted into a shared work program, she said. This allows staff to collect unemployment on the percentage of reduced wages.
She was able to bring back the part-time employees for some hours after a full-time employee left for another job.
The authority had expected a good year. Rates were raised to cover costs from a new state tax, and the Danbury Hat Tricks were attracting parkers to the garage, Pacific said.
But revenue from the parking permits and meters at the Metro-North Railroad station has been trending down since 2011, when about $36,000 was collected. Last fiscal year, revenues were at around $21,700.
These revenues could increase if the plan to for a faster ride to New York City comes to fruition, said David St. Hilaire, the city’s finance director.
Money collected goes back to the city to maintain the station and cover administrative costs for parking. The city then pays $23,400 to the authority for managing the parking.
“It’s not just about COVID,” he said. “This was a trend that’s been coming on. COVID exacerbated it.”