Consideration and Approval of Parking Demand Study: Request by Mountain Line to approve a Parking Demand Study for the new Downtown Connection Center subject to the issuance of a Conditional Use Permit.

Section 10-50.80.060.C of the City of Flagstaff Zoning Code allows a property owner to submit a study or plan prepared in accordance with the established professional traffic and parking practices by a registrant licensed to practice in the State of Arizona to allow reduced parking for any development.  The study or plan is required to document how any reductions are calculated and the assumptions utilized in the calculations.  The Planning Director may approve a reduction equal to, or less than, 30 percent of the total parking spaces required by this Division.  Any request greater than 30 percent requires the approval of the City Council.  The applicant is requesting to meet the required on-site parking by managing demand with the use of bus passes for employees and to utilize existing paid public parking.  

***A formal presentation will be included in the final packet***

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Priority Based Budget Key Community Priorities and Objectives
Environmental Stewardship:  Implement sustainable building practices, enhance waste diversion program, alternative energy programs and multi-modal transportation options.
Livable Community: Provide amenities and activities that support a healthy lifestyle.  
Sustainable, Innovative Infrastructure:  Provide effective management of and infrastructure for all modes of transportation.

Regional Plan
Goal T.7. Provide a high-quality, safe, convenient, accessible public transportation system, where feasible, to serve as an attractive alternative to single-occupant vehicles.  
Policy T.7.2 Provide public transit centers and options that are effectively distributed throughout the region to increase access to public transit.
Policy T.7.3.Support a public transit system design that encourages frequent and convenient access points, for various transportation modes and providers, such as private bus and shuttle systems, park-and-ride lots for cars and bicycles, and well placed access to bus, railroad, and airline terminal facilities.

There has been no previous Council decision on the Parking Demand Study affiliated with the Mountain Line Downtown Connection Center.

1.  The City Council may approve the Mountain Line DCC Parking Demand Study as written.
2.  The City Council may approve the Mountian Line DCC Parking Demand Study with conditions.
3.  The City Council may deny the Mountain Line DCC Parking Demand Study.

Section 10-40.30.040.B of the Flagstaff Zoning Code (Page 40.30-15), Allowed Uses, identifies “Passenger Transportation Facilities” as an allowed land use in the Commercial Service (CS) Zone subject to the approval of a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) by the Planning Commission.  A Passenger Transportation Facility is defined as “facilities for public and commuter transportation including railroad or bus terminals, and service facilities for commercial motor vehicles used for commercial passenger transportation but excluding travel agencies or taxicabs.”
 
The applicant, Mountain Line, has been using part of the existing site as a Passenger Transportation Facility since approximately 2008.  At the time the use was established, a Conditional Use Permit was not required under the Land Development Code.  In 2011, the City replaced the Land Development Code with the Flagstaff Zoning Code, which now requires a Conditional Use Permit for Passenger Transportation Facilities.  
 
The applicant is proposing to demolish an existing storage building, which includes the existing Mountain Line Comfort Station, and construct a new two-story 18,983 square foot structure intended to house Mountain Line staff, bus operator facilities, and patron amenities, as well as develop community civic space, and expand the existing bus plaza as part of a multi-phased development.  The City has preserved areas for future parking and the potential for a future parking garage as the site develops over time.
 
The applicant is proposing to redevelop the site in several phases.  Phase 1 includes the new structure located at the intersection of Milton Road and Phoenix Avenue, associated site improvements, and public civic spaces adjacent to the building.  During Phase 1, the existing parking and transit operations remain as they are currently.  A temporary pedestrian way will be developed to connect the two areas as part of Phase 1.  Phase 2, which is dependent on the completion of the Rio de Flag flood control project on this site, includes the expansion of the bus plaza and extension of the FUTS trail through this site.  It is anticipated that the Rio de Flag work on-site will remove the existing pedestrian bridge that connects the site to Beaver Street.  At the time Phase 2 is constructed, pedestrian access will have to be relocated if this bridge is removed.  Phase 2 may likely occur within two separate steps by two different entities (Mountain Line and the City of Flagstaff).  As the bus plaza area expands, a large portion of the existing parking area is removed.  The City has worked with Mountain Line to maximize public parking on the remaining area along the north boundary of the parcel.  In Phase 2 this will be done by constructing an interim surface parking lot that connects with the existing surface parking lot on Beaver St.  Phase 2 also includes a larger expanded civic space that is intended to serve the larger neighborhood/community.  Additionally, the City has worked with Mountain Line to protect the possibility of a future Phase 3, which includes the construction of a parking garage by the City of Flagstaff on the subject site to increase the availability of public parking in the downtown area.  It is likely that the FUTS will have to be relocated on-site to accommodate a garage.

The Downtown Connection Center is a unique use which is not adequately covered by the parking standards found within the Zoning Code.  There is no designated parking calculation for a passenger transportation facility.  The closest use, office use, requires one parking space for every 300 square feet.  That would result in a requirement of 63 parking spaces for this facility.

However, given the unique nature of this development, applicants can submit a parking demand study to show why their use requires a specific amount of parking. Large portions of the proposed building are used by patrons and drivers of the Mountain Line buses.  They are not in need of parking spaces to access all the resources of the Downtown Connection Center.  The portion of the facility designed for these uses is eliminated from the parking requirements for the site.  The parking demand study focuses on the portion of the building occupied by employees that need to travel to and from the site daily.   The study removes all unoccupied areas of the building from the parking calculations including storage areas, hallways, and corridors.  The study also applies travel demand management options provided to the employees who will occupy the building to use alternative modes of transportation.  Utilizing these techniques reduces the total amount of parking required for the building to 15 spaces.  The concept plan shows five new parking spaces proposed within the existing right-of-way for Phoenix Avenue extending onto the subject property.  These five spaces are still preliminary as they may need to be replaced with a future turn lane to accommodate improvements as proposed to the Milton Road/Phoenix Avenue intersection.  If that is the case, then all 15 required parking spaces will need to be provided within the existing parking areas located on-site and currently managed by Park Flag.    A separate agreement between Mountain Line and the City of Flagstaff will need to be completed in order to allow the use of these spaces for the Downtown Connection Center.