Sharon Coolidge

scoolidge@enquirer.com

In Columbus%2C residential parking permits cost %2425 a year. In San Francisco they cost %24100 a year.

City of Cincinnati administrators are quietly shopping around a plan that shows residential parking permits in Over-the-Rhine would cost $300 per year - money that would go to help operate the streetcar.

Opponents say that is simply too much, possibly the highest permit cost of any city in the country. But Mayor John Cranley says the city has no choice; it needs the money and streetcar beneficiaries have to help pay for it.

"This all needs to be viewed in the context of paying for the streetcar," Cranley said. "These are choices the community need to make. But every time you lower the cost of the permit, you lower the operation frequency of the streetcar."

Streetcar operations are expected to cost $3.8 million a year -- and so far the city has not identified where that money would come from.

At $300, the cost is 10 times as much as it costs to park in the city's two other areas -- Pendleton and Clifton Hills near Cincinnati State -- where yearly permits cost $30. Over-the-Rhine residents are concerned the pricey parking will force low income residents to leave.

Cincinnati City Councilman David Mann -- who oversees council's Neighborhoods Committee -- sympathizes.

"We have to separate the challenges of funding the streetcar from a fair parking plan," Mann said. "It's too much."

City spokesman Rocky Merz said the plan is still being tweaked based on community feedback.

But some details include:

* Parking permits would cost $300 year.

* $25 annual permits would be available to low-income residents

In addition, meters would be enforced until 9 p.m. and the price would double from 50 cents an hour to a dollar an hour; and then $2 for the third hour. Compare that to Downtown, were meters are enforced until 5 p.m. and the maximum cost of a meter is $2 an hour.

The revamped parking plan is expected to bring in $2.5 million a year.

Cincinnati City Councilman Chris Seelbach, who has lived in Over-the-Rhine 10 years, said $300 a year "is ridiculous."

"That is not where the majority of council is," he said. "The residential parking plan is a good idea but the yearly fee will be similar to ones in other neighborhoods."

In Columbus, residential parking permits cost $25 a year. In San Francisco they cost $100 a year.

"We will be somewhere between that," Seelbach said. "We have to find streetcar operating money, but it's not all going to come from residential parking permits."

Merz said the city is taking a fresh look at parking in Over-the-Rhine in light of a citywide parking overhaul.

The city last month came to an agreement with international data giant Xerox, one that allow the city to be in full control of the system. Part of that plan calls for installing 1,500, single-space meters, which will allow drivers to pay by credit card and eventually with the tap of a smartphone app. Most meters will be installed across Downtown and Over-the-Rhine. The city will also Install credit-card payment kiosks in Over-the-Rhine, where damaged single-space meters continue to cheat the city out of revenue and do nothing for the aesthetic image of the redeveloping neighborhood.

"This is a comprehensive look and it's long overdo," Merz said. "We want to make sure the parking environment matches all the changes that have happened there."

The plan is expected to be rolled out in two weeks.

Over-the-Rhine Community Council President Ryan Messer and Pendleton Neighborhood Council President Tabatha L. Anderson wrote council earlier this week saying they "share your commitment to finding solutions for the operating expenses of the Cincinnati Streetcar."

"As Presidents of the two community councils, we represent a very diverse population," the wrote. "Decisions made that affect our neighborhood must consider this diversity."

They urged council to remember the neighborhoods have a diverse population, not all of whom can afford a $300 yearly parking permit.

"Why are doing something so different in one neighborhood and without neighborhood engagement?" Messer said.

Many say the plan is definitely worth consideration.

"I support the concept," Bauman said. But, he does want a careful vetting of the amount to make sure it doesn't have unintended consequences.

Haile Foundation's Vice President Eric Avner said he appreciates the mayor and council coming up with options.

"The resident parking permit is certainly worth analyzing," Avner said. "However, what if we went one step further? What if an OTR or Downtown or Banks resident were able to purchase a parking permit, a Red Bike pass, and a streetcar pass, all combined in one monthly package?"

A "downtown commuter combo" could be a compelling concept, he said.

Mann said Cincinnati Center City Development Corp., which is redeveloping much of the neighborhood, has been involved in the planning.

3CDC operates two garages in Over-the-Rhine and a parking lot at 12th and Vine streets. It costs $85 a month to park in the garages.

Mayor John Cranley's plan to operate the streetcar

Streetcar operations are estimated to cost $3.8 million a year. Though that money isn't needed yet, no sources for it have been identified. About $1 million in startup costs is needed by next April. The streetcar is scheduled to begin carrying passengers in the fall of 2016.

Cranley outlined the operating math:

The Haile/U.S. Bank Foundation pledged $900,000 a year for 10 years. That takes the operating cost gap down to $2.8 million.

About $1 million a year could come from fares. That would take the gap down to $1.8 million.

Cranley is proposing that parking – extra meters in Over-the-Rhine and residential parking permits – could bring in another $700,000 a year. That would take the gap down to $1.1 million.

The rest, Cranley said, should come from Over-the-Rhine residents imposing a tax on themselves. The idea originated with City Council member P.G. Sittenfeld and streetcar supporters in December. The problem: So far no citizen has initiated creating a special taxing district.