CC - Item 4B - Discussion of Complaints Regarding Private Bus Patrons Parking on Residential Streets Amis. M
ROSEMEAD CITY COUNCIL
°'°` STAFF REPORT
O* r
°aa
TO: MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
FROM: JEFF ALLRED, CITY MANAGER
DATE: OCTOBER 23, 2014
SUBJECT: DISCUSSION OF COMPLAINTS REGARDING PRIVATE BUS PATRONS
PARKING ON RESIDENTIAL STREETS
SUMMARY
The City Council will discuss resident complaints of casino bus patrons parking on
residential streets for long periods of time, which precludes use of street parking by
residents. To address these concerns, staff will suggest that the Council pursue actions
at a future Council meeting to delete provisions in the Municipal Code that enable
private buses to load and unload passengers on private properties.
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council provide direction to staff regarding placement of
an item on the agenda for consideration at an upcoming Council meeting.
BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION
Early in 2014, the City began to explore alternatives to mitigate problems created by
private bus operations on public streets. The problems included bus patron littering
adjacent to loading and unloading areas, pedestrian safety concerns (i.e., jaywalking by
bus patrons), bus traffic on residential streets, and parking displacement on residential
streets by bus patrons.
On June 10, 2014, the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 941 after second reading to
address the above listed problems. At its meeting of October 14, 2014, the City Council
adopted Ordinance No. 943 to accommodate private buses coming into Rosemead to
patronize local gift shops and restaurants between the hours of 5 p.m. and 10 p.m.
daily. As of November 13, 2014, the Municipal Code regulations for private buses will
include the following:
• Private buses are prohibited from stopping on City streets to load and unload
passengers. Exceptions to these regulations are: 1) emergency situations; 2)
while loading or unloading hotel guests; and 3) tour buses with an appointment
itinerary and passenger roster may park on City streets daily between the hours
of 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., without loading new passengers.
• Private buses may load or unload passengers on private properties if they obtain
ITEM NUMBER:
City Council Meeting
October28, 2014
Page 2 of 2
an agreement with a private property owner through a City application process.
The administrative rules for such private property agreements are as follows:
1. Private buses cannot create a parking an on-site deficiency or exacerbate an
existing parking deficiency (shortage) in a parking lot based on the City's
parking standards specified in the Zoning Code.
2. Private buses cannot block driving aisles or load/unload in already approved
loading zones.
3. The circulation pattern for the private buses must be workable without
creating safety hazards for other motorists (for example, a three-point turn
cannot endanger other motorists or parked cars).
4. Safe ingress and egress from, and onto, commercial (non-residential) streets
is required.
5. The loading/unloading area shall not create loitering or other public safety
concerns.
At the October 14, 2014 City Council meeting, residents on streets adjacent to private
bus loading/unloading areas registered complaints about parking displacement on
residential streets by casino bus patrons. To address these complaints, staff is
recommending that the City Council focus on the source of the problem which is bus
patrons who park on residential streets to board private buses bound for casinos. A
way to eliminate the problem of parking displacement on residential streets would be to
remove provisions in the Municipal Code that permit private buses to enter into
agreements with property owners to load and unload passengers on private properties.
Staff believes that eliminating the source of the problem, i.e., casino bus patrons
parking on residential streets to board buses on private properties, is a superior solution
than other possible actions such as imposing "permit parking only" restrictions on
residential streets. "Permit parking only" designations are likely to lead to a proliferation
of requests throughout the city and significant enforcement challenges that will result in
high costs to the City.
It is important for the Council to understand that under the City's Zoning Code, the
parking of buses on private properties is not a permitted use. To date, with respect to
this issue, staff has distinguished the loading and unloading of passengers from actual
parking of private buses, which is not a permitted use.
Currently, there are two private property bus loading/unloading agreements in effect
within the City. Code enforcement will continue to monitor those sites for any
violations.