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4\ CITY OF RIVERSIDE REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY MEMORANDUM Honorable Mayor & Agency Members Date: Item No.: July 25, 2000 2 Subject: Request Authorization to Award Preparation of Comprehensive Downtown Parking Study to Wilbur Smith & Associates Background On January 18, 2000, the Agency adopted a Downtown Retail Entertainment Strategy and Action Plan for attracting upscale restaurants, specialty retail and entertainment opportunities. In addition, the City's Planning Department recently solicited a Request for Proposals for a Downtown Riverside Specific Plan for the purpose of developing a comprehensive specific plan and environmental impact report. The major purpose of the proposed specific plan is to clarify the vision of downtown, while at the same time addressing land use development regulations. While a number of focused studies have been prepared, downtown Riverside has not been comprehensively studied since 1981. Parking, transportation, and circulation are critical elements to the success of downtown revitalization and are highly dependent upon its ability to provide ingress, egress, and parking for the public. Consequently, on March 21, 2000, the Redevelopment Agency authorized staff to solicit proposals for a Comprehensive Downtown Parking Study ("the Study"). The area to be studied is bounded by Fourteenth, Lime, Third and Market Streets. Current Issue On June 28, 2000, three respondents to the Request for Proposals conducted presentations to the interview panel which included, Councilman Beaty, Bob Brown, Chairman of the Downtown Parking Committee (DPC) and DPC member's Mike Conway, Doyle Letbetter, Bill Wilkman from the Planning Department and Assistant City Manager, Bob Wales. Wilbur Smith Associates (WSA) was selected due to their extensive experience in municipal parking studies, including a recent parking study prepared for the County of Riverside. WSA has diverse and comprehensive experience in municipal parking, transportation planning and design, having completed over 300 parking projects nationally and internationally. With a local office in Anaheim, they offer the Agency all of the necessary qualifications and experience to undertake this project. WSA proposes to prepare the Study for $56,610. The major purpose of the Study, is to evaluate current operational policies and management tactics that exist with respect to municipal parking facilities as well as all on- and off-street parking issues to determine current and future parking supply and demand. WSA will review Municipal Codes, conduct field research, analyze parking use supply and demand, review parking operations, parking facility analysis, parking policy evaluation and prepare recommendations (outlined in the attached Scope of Work). Mapping and data will be developed in a format compatible with the City's GIS system in order to create a computerized parking demand model. The parking model will be able to examine the parking demands associated with future land use scenarios. Analysis The accomplishment of the Downtown Specific Plan is vital to the success of downtown Riverside. A well- thought~out approach should be taken to ensure the successful revitalization of downtown as it relates to the increasing pressure to provide adequate parking. The Study will be commissioned parallel to the Specific Plan, and the selected consultants will work together to achieve the goals of the Agency and the City. 2-1