Acccording to the Mercury article of Feb 8, you felt that an increase from $2 to $5 is “inconsequential”. Maybe so if you were thinking of a once in a while performance at the River Run, or the occasional Guelph Storm hockey game. But for Storm season ticket holders, parking would cost about $5 X 40 home games per season, including a few playoff games. That’s $200 on top of the costs of X number of season tickets per family – a substantial expense. For many, staying home to watch games on Rogers cable will become a far more attractive option – and pre-game shopping and dinners with the family downtown may not happen in future.
On your blog, you helped justify the increase by pointing out that “Guelph Transit offers free bus service to Friday night home games.” There are a number of problems with that justification:
– Only about half of Storm home games are Fridays.
– Many Storm fans and their families who attend games do not live reasonably close to bus stops. For example, we live approximately 7 blocks from the closest stop – a significant trek in mid-winter. I’m a senior and my wife suffers from a walking disability that requires me to drive her to the top level of the East Sleeman Parkade and assist her in reaching her seat. Many fans sitting around us have similar limitations.
– Those from Guelph who purchase Storm tickets online or by phone must pick these up on game night from the box office in Sleeman. Showing tickets stubs to the bus driver after the game gets a free ride home, but will that also get a cash reimbursement for money spent on fares going to the game? Not!
-Large numbers of those attending Storm home games are visitors from out of town. Free Guelph Transit on Fridays will be of no use to them.
There are even more problematic issues to be considered. Apparently the City has recently decided to close the pedestrian tunnel under the railway near the Neeve Street parking lot, and permanently fence off all pedestrian access from the south side of the tracks. Many special event patrons now park south of the tracks – resulting in dramatically increased demands for the East and West Parkades of the Sleeman Centre. Expect “Lot Full” signs to appear for both parkades before every home game – with angry families vowing to never go downtown again [and out of town visitors vowing to avoid Guelph games in future]. Rogers cable is “free” and sure doesn’t present these kinds of obstacles. Hockey fans from out of town will not know to try the Baker Street lot – but that facility too may be showing a “Lot Full” sign! Meanwhile, the Neeve Street lot will be totally empty!!!
And if offsetting administration costs for special event parking is an issue, try reducing obvious inefficiencies first. At present, before games, there are two staff at each Sleeman parkade – one to collect the parking fee, and yet another to hand drivers their paper receipt. [A coin operated mechanical device like those in local hospital parking lots would eliminate these four salaries.] The same paper receipts are then collected post-game by two staff at the West parkade exit – a totally redundant exercise since we wouldn’t be leaving if we hadn’t paid the flat fee already! This post-game receipt collection regularly results in 20 minute delays in exiting the parkade, with idling engines and major exhaust pollution. It’s a real embarrassment for our City that out of town fans experience this, and we’ve become well known for these post-game parkade nightmares throughout the OHL circuit. Misssissauga, London, Brampton, Kitchener, Windsor, and other venues do not have these parking problems – and many offer free parking.
All I ask is that you and fellow council members carefully consider the implications of special event parking increases. City staff who recommended these measures obviously haven’t – and certainly don’t appear to attend special events downtown!
Growing our downtown won’t happen if we make it more difficult to enjoy – for ourselves or for visitors.CS
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The existing cost at $2 x 40 games generates $80 for the season and is based upon a single car entry. The car can carry as many people as legally permitted. At $5 x 40 which is $200, the difference is $120 in new charges. i.e. $3 extra per game. For example The City of Kingston charges a range of $3 to $8 dollars depending on how close you wish to park to a special event venue.
The Neeve tunnel, based upon construction timing, will not be closed until Spring of this year and the fence along the tracks is approximately 2 to 4 weeks away from being installed. In saying this, there is a maintained and lighted walkway from the Neeve parking lot leading directly to Woolwich Street where patrons can walk directly from there to the Sleeman Centre and River Run Centre. Therefore, I do not see this parking facility being underutilized once the tunnel is closed and fence installed. The same applies to those who are attending Storm games or performing arts activities who park south of the tracks in other areas. It just means that they have to walk a little further. There are a number of other free parking off-street facilities that are still available to the public located north of the tracks upon a short walk. The Wilson Lot, Fountain Lot and MacDonell Lot. Fans from out of town can be directed more effectively to both paid and unpaid parking facilities through communication tools such as the internet and through contacts at the Sleeman Centre. We shall work with our Community Service colleagues to improve in communicating to the public where these areas are.
We provide 2 staff at each parkade before the event to help speed up the process of entry. Note, that we already have one person working at the West parkade as part of our normal daily operation from 8 am until 10 pm. The East parkade is a permit only lot until 6 pm and needs no staff until such time as a special event occurs. There is no need to have a staff person there on exit as it is either a vehicle who has a permit or a vehicle who has paid on entry that is exiting.
The West parkade offers 2 staff for exiting purposes. As noted above there is already one staff in attendance to serve the daily public parking i.e. public that have entered before we start collecting for the special event and have to pay full price on exit. We add one of the contracted staff who is already on site on a daily basis to do a number of other activities such as floating between paid operation areas, general housekeeping etc., to be at the West parkade to help the traffic exit more expeditiously. i.e. we would have 2 types of customers leaving at the same time, one paying with cash and one just handing over their special event paid ticket
As a follow up regarding OHL teams and parking;
Kitchener – free parking in large lots front and back of facility, but exiting at the game is always slow
Windsor – offers free and paid parking; free is for the first 1000 cars at the lot next to the facility and after that they have to find alternate parking and the closer is paid parking
Peterborough –paid parking at the facility, free if you wish to park and walk further away
Ottawa – paid parking at the facility, free if you wish to park and walk from further away
We are checking on other OHL teams
Please note that this fee is applied to all special events not just Storm games and any performing arts centre that I am familiar with charges for event parking; For instance Center in the Square in Kitchener charges $7 for surface parking, $20 for Valet parking and $10 for underground parking as one example.
• An on-line ticket purchase receipt would be adequate “proof” for free transit to Friday Storm games
• An option for weekend Storm games would be the Day Pass which can be used as a family pass on Sat and Sun – cost is $7.00
• Although we have never had a request for mobility service to a Storm game on Friday night, I’m sure we can make some type of arrangement if requested Staff~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
$120 per family is an overwhelming increase for those already concerned about paying hundreds of dollars for Storm season tickets – compared to free game coverage on Rogers. Simply repeating the proposed increase, as Mr. McIlveen does, certainly doesn’t minimize it?
Someone has also suggested to me that, since City employees park free downtown, these proposed rate increases would have no effect on those staff. Hope this can’t possibly be true – or taxpayers will be livid when that hits the press!
The Kingston fees for special event parking alluded to may not apply to those attending Kingston Frontenac hockey games? CS