AURORA | Starting in September, Aurora residents living in light-rail close neighborhoods will need permits for street parking as city officials implement a parking program they say will serve commuters and protect nearby residential parking.
At a July 25 meeting, Aurora City Council members voted 9-1 in favor of a plan to institute restricted parking on residential streets surrounding four light rail stations: lliff Station, Florida Station, 13th Avenue Station and Colfax Station. Ward II Councilwoman Renie Peterson was the lone dissenting vote.
John Treinen, a resident who said he has lived in his home for 38 years near the future Iliff Station parking garage, lauded the plan to restrict parking on residential streets near the station and parking garage.
“Our overall experience has been very positive,” he said of the neighborhood’s interactions over the year with Robert Ferrin, Aurora’s parking program manager. “Mr. Ferrin has listened to our suggestions and we have listened to his proposal … We developed the plan together for the betterment of the City of Aurora for it was the right thing to do.”
Treinen also thanked Ward IV Councilman Charlie Richardson for his part in negotiating a workable plan for residents near the future Iliff station and garage, which are located in Richardson’s ward.
The program will provide each household in a neighborhood parking permit district near a light rail station with two free parking permits. Obtaining a third or more parking permits will cost $10 each under the plan.
Commuter parking permits in these areas will cost at minimum $35 per month. The city also plans to install parking meters in some neighborhoods to cost $1 per hour to park if the plan is approved.
Under the plan, the city will charge commuters daily and monthly rates to use the 600-space, two-story parking garage being constructed for the Aurora “R” Line Iliff station.
Those minimum fees to park in the Iliff garage, set to begin in 2017, will be $3 per day and $50 for monthly parking. If the garage proves to be popular and exceeds 90-percent capacity, those rates could be raised as high as $5 per day and $85 per month.
At Aurora’s new Hyatt Hotel and Conference Center Garage, located across from the Anschutz Medical Campus, overnight parking will cost $12 and monthly parking costs will be $75.
The parking plan will also change other parts of Aurora’s enforcement code and be applicable citywide, not just in parking permit districts. Those changes will specifically reduce the time operable vehicles — including motor homes — can be parked on a city street without moving from 21 days to seven days.
The initial draft of the plan said cars will be moved after five days, but Richardson moved to amend the plan so cars could stay longer.
The amendment was narrowly approved by council members on a 6-5 vote, with Mayor Steve Hogan breaking the tie. Council members Sally Mounier, Brad Pierce, Barb Cleland, Francoise Bergan and Bob Roth voted against the measure.
The plan will reduce the time inoperable vehicles are allowed to stay in a spot from seven days down to only three.
Robert Ferrin, Aurora’s parking program manager, said inoperable cars sitting outside of homes for weeks as well as auto shops operating in public right-of-ways were two major issues the city learned about when conducting research with residents to design the new parking program.
He pointed to Denver, which only allows inoperable cars to stay on city streets for 72 hours as a contrast to Aurora’s relative leniency.
Robert Ferrin, Aurora’s parking program manager, said inoperable cars sitting outside of homes for weeks as well as auto shops operating in public right-of-ways were two major issues the city learned about when conducting research with residents to design the new parking program.
He pointed to Denver, which only allows inoperable cars to stay on city streets for 72 hours as a contrast to Aurora’s relative leniency.
The city will also establish a new parking bureau to hear parking citations. Individuals will receive a warning and no fine for their first non-safety violation, such as a permit parking or street sweeping violation, and $30 each time after that.
Ferrin said the Aurora Parking Bureau will employ one contract employee as a parking magistrate to hear parking citation disputes, but that the position may not be full-time and will be dependent on the number of disputes the city receives.
He said the parking bureau will also employ six to seven contract staff to implement off-street and on-street parking management, meter operations and parking enforcement. This also includes maintenance and operations at the Iliff garage.
Aurora officials are anticipating a large demand for parking with the opening of the 10.5-mile Aurora “R” light rail line set to travel along the I-225 corridor from Nine Mile station and connect with the East Rail line to Denver International Airport.
The parking plan is expected to go back to Aurora City Council August 8 for final approval. Ferrin said the city is looking into implementing the parking plan in September or October, before the light rail line opens at the end of this year.