AgdaPkt 2004-02-23 - Laserfiche WebLink

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I . I ' REPORT .A~\ To the Honorable Mayor and City Council From the City Manager March 23, 2004 Subject Parking Management Plan for the Scott Peterson Trial Recommendation Adoption by the City Council of a resolution temporarily closing to generally westbound traffic on Middlefield Road beginning at approximately one hundred and fifty feet from Veterans Boulevard to Bradford Street and the cui de sac of Fuller Street, from Allerton Street generally east to Winslow Street; suspending the maximum parking period permitted and rate of parking fees on said streets; and authorizing the parking of news media vehicles on said streets and the City's parking lot at the corner of Main Street and Bradford Street subject to issuance of revocable vehicle parking licenses and payment of established fees. Background The decision to change the venue of the Scott Peterson trial to San Mateo County has placed the City of Redwood City and the County of San Mateo in the midst of a national and international media spotlight. This high profile legal event is drawing numerous members of media and press representatives from outside of Redwood City. In order to effectively provide service, minimize the overall impact to onsite and surrounding infrastructure, minimize the interference with commerce, and provide for appropriate parking required by the media outlets for upcoming proceedings at the San Mateo County Courthouse, a parking management plan has been developed. The attached map indicates the sites for parking of media equipment in proximity to the courthouse and establishes an exclusive media parking lot in a nearby vacant City owned lot and thereby provide for the continued availability of parking for employees and customers of downtown businesses. Due to the influx of media anticipated at the San Mateo County Courthouse from March 3rd, 2004 through the end of the Peterson proceeding, the City will incur costs. These costs include additional staff time for administrative, public safety, maintenance, security and parking personnel, construction and maintenance of a media parking lot on City property on Bradford Street and a host of related costs, such as increased parking enforcement, additional refuse service, electricity, lost meter revenue, and material rental. Some of these construction and set-up/takedown costs will apply only during the first and last month of the trial. Other expenses, such as personnel costs, will scale up and down as needed by crowd size, traffic flow, and other factors. Based on the experience of the Cities of Santa Maria and Modesto in recent high profile trials, Police Department staff has estimated the possible potential costs at $1765 for the first month of the trial or approximately $98 per court day. The City of Modesto charged a parking fee to the media during the Peterson preliminary hearing that equated to $250 a day.