By Jonathan Friedman
Associate Editor

April 4, 2016 -- The Planning Commission this week will discuss the first parking rate increase for Downtown Santa Monica since 2012.

The proposed hikes come as officials prepare for next month’s arrival of the Expo Light Rail and seek to retain available spaces while deterring people from using structures for what’s called “park and ride” service.

Officials have proposed what City Parking Administrator Jason Kligier called “minor modifications” to parking prices in a report to the Planning Commission.

The proposed changes include a cost increase by 25 percent for hourly parking and 10 percent for monthly parking in Structures 1-10, the lots on 5th Street and the Ken Edwards Center.

Also proposed is bringing the Civic Center structure cost in line with the other downtown facilities. There is no proposal for a change to street meter rates.

Staff calls for the parking rate to rise from $1 to $1.25 for the first hour after a free 90 minutes and from $1.50 to $1.88 for each additional 30 minutes. The maximum daily amount would increase from $14 to $17.50.

The change for the monthly rate would go up from $160 to $176 for “all access,” $120 to $132 for weekdays only, $75 to $82.75 for weeknights/weekends only and $65 to $71.50 for “affordable housing.”

Parking in the Civic Center structure is currently much cheaper with a maximum daily amount of $5 and $3 if a person uses a debit card.

This is because it was “perceived by many as disconnected from the rest of Downtown,” according to Kligier’s report.

The situation has changed with a “more diverse set of land uses including Tongva Park, restaurants, and multifamily housing."

Kligier wrote, “As a result, and combined with inexpensive parking rates, weekday occupancies in the lot and structure are much higher than in the past.”

The parking situation is expected to further be impacted by the opening of the Expo station on 4th Street and Colorado Avenue on May 20.

“While prices in the downtown, once adjusted, should discourage park-and-ride activity, $3 to $5 weekday daily maximums in the Civic Center might actively encourage this behavior,” Kligier wrote.

Under this plan the maximum rate for the Civic Center Structure would go up to $14 (the current rate in other downtown structures) only during the daytime.

This would not be the case during evenings and weekends, a time when, officials say, parking in the structure is underused.

“To further the peripheral parking strategy outlined in the Draft Downtown Community Plan, staff is considering a $3 evening flat rate (from 5:30 p.m. to 3 a.m.) and maintaining the $5 daily maximum on weekends,” Kligier wrote.

Monthly prices are proposed for increases from $65 to $160 for “all access” and from $50 to $75 for weeknights/weekends only access.

The monthly prices for all the structures is a significant deal for users. This could raise further “park and ride” issues. Staff are considering different possibilities to prevent that from happening.

These considerations include limiting monthly keycard sales to Downtown Santa Monica employers, employees and residents of Downtown buildings without on-site parking.

Also keycard users could be restricted to a couple of structures.

The Planning Commission will discuss these recommendations at its meeting on Wednesday. It will provide a recommendation to the City Council.