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WEST MAIN STREET PARKING OPPORTUNITIES AND ANALYSIS City of Charlottesville Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates Inc. | 19 The Midtown Street Fair was held on Sunday September 21st from 1-6 p.m., closing West Main Street from 4th Street to 7th Street; on-street parking was also prohibited during this time, resulting in the loss of 27 on-street public parking spaces. The street fair, and its attendant parking restrictions, provided the opportunity to observe how parking patterns fluctuate during a special event, and the impact of increased demand for off-street parking. Additional surveys were undertaken on Sunday October 26th, which was a typical Sunday (i.e., no special events). During this time on-street parking peaked at 106% of capacity at 11am due to the parking of vehicles in illegal spaces. Throughout the rest of the day, on-street parking utilization rates ranged from 43% to 80%. At the Amtrak Station – the nearest public off-street parking facility – near capacity utilization rates were recorded for the 1-3 p.m. (93%) and 3-5 p.m. (93%) periods during the Midtown Street Fair. In the 43 on-street public parking spaces that remained open during the street fair (Ridge to 4th, 7th to 8th, 8th to 9th, and 9th to 10th), utilization rates nearly met or exceeded capacity from 1-3 p.m. (98%), 3-5 p.m. (95%), and 5-7 p.m. (105%). Demand for reserved/permit only facilities is evident during the work week, with utilization rates for the CBRE facility steady at 58%, an average of 64% utilization at the Starr Hill facility, and 50% utilization for the Sweethaus lot. However, during the weekend periods utilization rates for these facilities were lower than 10%. Implementing shared parking policies in select private and reserved/permit, where private spaces are opened for public use during non-business hours, could help relieve the demand for on-street public parking and reduce the time visitors spend circling for parking, especially during special events that result in the loss of publicly-accessible on-street parking. The utilization maps for each day and time period are included as Appendix C. Land Use development To determine the future potential for West Main Street’s parking supply the most recent project information was gathered from the City of Charlottesville. Five major development projects have been completed or are expected to completed in the near future, as shown in Figure 6. The West Main Street parking supply will increase by a net of 2,266 spaces and over 780 residential units and 235,000 square feet of commercial land uses if all six developments are built as proposed. The growth of West Main Street as a mixed-use corridor with significant proposed development creates multiple opportunities for viable alternatives to the existing parking system. Figure 6 West Main Street Expected Development Project Square Footage/Units Parking Spaces Battle Building – University of Virginia -completed 155,471 sq.ft office 1050 (at the 11th Street Parking Garage) Marriot -under construction 124 residential units 27,251 sq. ft office 118 The Flats -completed 219 residential units 24,600 sq. ft retail 411 The Standard 205 residential units 15,905 sq. ft retail 499 1000 West Main 240 residential units 9,340 sq,ft retail 188