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A review of San Diego community parking districts by city officials showed “concerning contract management practices” and spending weighted heavily toward administrative costs and low priority projects, according to a staff report.
The report revealed a variety of shortcomings with the management of the districts, including missing documentation for contractor payments and itemized lists of costs for projects.
The City Council was set to act on a proposal to eliminate the parking districts entirely at its meeting on Monday. However Council President Joe LaCava announced at the start of the meeting that the council would not take up the matter and it would be returned to the city staff after more information had been received.
The proposal was to eliminate the districts, take the 2026 budget year allocations of $1.8 million back and in future years, take 100% of all the revenues collected in the district. Under current policy the revenues are divided between the city and the districts.
The report said the city could expect between $2 million and $2.5 million in revenues from the change annually that could be better used for streets, mobility projects and infrastructure.
“By rescinding Council Policy 100-18, the City can take on responsible management of all parking meter revenues as a powerful instrument for enhancing local infrastructure where it’s needed the most and eliminating unnecessary administrative expenses,” the report argued.
The staff report calling for rescinding the city policy governing the districts echoes concerns made in two separate reports this year revealed in an inewsource report earlier this month.
The Mobility Board in March criticized the districts for a lack of transparency in how they spend parking meter funds, potential conflicts of interests and other issues. The county civilian grand jury also issued a report calling for the outright elimination of the districts because they added a layer of unnecessary bureaucracy and spent too much on administrative costs.
The city has four active parking districts — though a total of seven are established — in downtown, Uptown, Mid-City and Pacific Beach. The districts are managed by 11 different nonprofit organizations such as Business Improvement Districts and collect millions of dollars each year in parking meter revenues.
Under the policy initially enacted in the 1990s, the city took 55% of the revenue and the districts got the remainder. That was changed earlier this year, with the city taking a larger slice of 85% of the money.
The Transportation Department conducted its review in March, beginning by asking the 11 managing entities for various documents the report said they were required to maintain under contracts with the city.
At first, only one district was able to furnish the records and, after a second round of requests, only three did so.
In addition to the missing information regarding subcontractors, the report said that “most managing organizations were not providing itemized invoices that sufficiently detailed the services provided, most did not provide evidence of implementing competitive procurement processes and some appear to not be charging reasonable fees.”
Further inquiry showed that more than a third of the expenditures by the districts was paying for administration. An additional 40% went to expenses for maintaining string lighting in the district, placement and removal of bollards on Fifth Avenue downtown and on murals and decorative crosswalks, the report said.
The report said this money could be better spent on projects in the various districts that were more urgent.
A chart, for example, showed that as of August among the four active districts there were nearly 2,900 streetlights that are out or need repair, and nearly the same number of sidewalk repair projects.
Ben Nicholls, director of the Hillcrest Business Association that includes the Uptown parking district, said he did not know why the item was postponed but said he hoped the council was considering something other than eliminating the policy entirely.
“There is a middle way here that doesn’t take away the policy,” he said. “I think it’s important to take some time. I’m assuming there are legitimate things the mayor’s office or Transportation Department want fixed, so let’s fix it.”
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