The Parking Advisory Board has recommended the creation of an "Anti-Shuffling Ordinance" in order to provide more complete parking enforcement in Downtown Billings. Parking Advisory Board (PAB) members approved the creation of this ordinance at their June 12, 2012, meeting. The City Council was presented with this recommendation at its July 2, 2012, Work Session as one element of a Park II Refinancing presentation. This ordinance is the final step of that recommendation from the PAB that asked for increasing meter fees; increasing certain parking violation fines; stopping an annual transfer from the Parking Fund to the General Fund; allowing the transfer of $100,000 from the N. 27th St Urban Renewal District to the Parking Division to off-set a refinanced debt payment on the Park II Expansion; and creating an "Anti-Shuffling" ordinance. Staff has worked with Bonnie Sutherland, Assistant City Attorney, to draft the language of this ordinance.
Shuffling occurs when a vehicle is parked for 2 hours in one 2-hour time-regulated space and then moved to another 2-hour time-regulated parking space within the same block on the same day. This act is often committed by downtown business owners and employees and it reduces the supply of short-term on-street spaces that are needed for customer parking.  Rich and Associates recommended the creation of this type of ordinance , which is considered a national best-practice for municipalities. “Block” means both sides of a single street between two consecutive intersecting streets. For example, both sides of the 2800 block of 2nd Avenue North would be a single block, and both sides of 3rd Avenue between 29th Street and 30th Street would be a single block.  City Council approved the ordinance on first reading after holding a public hearing on September 24, 2012.

The recommended changes would increase the Parking Division's ability to cause turnover at all 2-hour time regulated parking spaces and create more efficient parking by penalizing those engaged in space shuffling. City Council's options are: 1. Accept recommended changes to BMCC 24-456 2. Accept some of the recommended changes to BMCC 24-456 3. Reject recommended changes to BMCC 24-456

Staff foresees that the creation of the Anti-Shuffling ordinance will increase parking violation annual revenue by approximately $8,000.

City Council held a public hearing and considered the ordinance on first reading at the September 24, 2012, meeting.

Parking space shuffling has been a common act in Billings for many years. A significant number of downtown employees and business owners are the habitual offenders as they need a place to park for long periods of time and use the more accessible on-street spaces. The Parking Division already has a Meter Plugging ordinance that prohibits someone from parking at one meter all day and continue to pay the meter every two hours. The Anti-shuffling ordinance will close the last loop-hole in parking regulations and help to move these long term parkers into a more appropriate location, such as a parking garage or 10-hour meter.

The Parking Advisory Board members approved proposed rate and fine increases at their June 12, 2012, meeting; this ordinance was part of the proposed fine changes. Staff conducted three Public Informational meeting on June 26-28, 2012, in hopes of educating the public and gaining feedback about the proposed rate and fine changes. Staff presented the Anti-Shuffling ordinance at the June 28, 2012, Downtown Billings Association Merchant Meeting as part of the proposed rate and fine changes approved by the Parking Advisory Board. The public meetings generated no comments about the Anti-Shuffling ordinance but staff did answer some questions about the concept of "Shuffling". Based on those questions, Staff will issue a one-time Shuffling courtesy ticket to each vehicle in order to allow the public to understand the new ordinance language and correct their behavior before a $25.00 violation is issued.