CITY OF POMONA
COUNCIL REPORT
December 2, 2024
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Anita D. Scott, City Manager
Submitted By: Kirk Pelser, Economic Development Director SUBJECT: RECOMMENDATION TO ELIMINATE CASH SALES FOR DAILY PARKING AT ALL VEHICLE PARKING DISTRICT (VPD) PAYMENT KIOSKS RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that the City Council approve the elimination of cash payments for daily parking at the Vehicle Parking District (VPD) payment kiosks.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
Currently there are three options to pay for VPD daily parking:
1) Credit Card
2) Cash – bills and coins
3) Flowbird Mobile Parking (phone) - with application (AP) and credit card.
To improve operational efficiency and safety of both the public and staff, it is recommended that the option to pay for daily parking with cash be eliminated. In the past several years, cash payments for daily parking have become less frequent while credit card payments have increased. Data collected from the parking kiosks indicate that in the past 12 months approximately 32,845 daily parking purchase were made using credit cards while only 4,732 payments were made with cash (bills and coins) this data is demonstrated in the “Attachment” to this report. Although there is an additional 35¢ processing fee added to the standard $2.00 per day parking fee (for 24 hours, from 8am to 8am the next day), the convenience for parking patrons to use a credit card outweighs the option to pay with cash. Carrying extra coins and/or bill will no longer be necessary and safety will be increased by not having to expose cash while paying for parking. Additionally, the patron’s credit card statement will confirm that parking was paid, which can be used to correct an erroneous parking citation. Staff safety and efficiency will also improve by not having to physically collect the currency in person at each parking kiosk.
SB1439/GOVERNMENT CODE §84308 APPLICABILITY:
☐ When this box is checked, it indicates the agenda item is subject to the Levine Act SB1439 requirements. Councilmembers are reminded to check their campaign contributions and determine whether they have received a campaign contribution of $250 or more that would require disclosure and/or recusal from discussing or acting on this agenda item. Campaign contributions of $250 or more made 1) by any person or entity who is identified in the agenda report as the applicant or proposer or 2) on behalf of the applicant or participant, including a parent, subsidiary or otherwise Second Reading And Adoption Of An Ordinance Amending The Historic Overlay Of The Zoning Map Page 2 of 3 – November 18, 2024 related business entity, or 3) by any person who has a financial interest in the agenda item requires a councilmember to comply with SB1439.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The VPD/City will experience no fiscal impact by eliminating the option to pay for VPD daily parking at the parking kiosks in cash. The public will still be able to pay for daily parking by credit card at the parking kiosks or by using the Flowbird Mobile Parking application via credit card payments. When paying with a credit card, whether at the kiosk or utilizing Mobile Pay, a 35¢ credit card processing fee is added to the standard $2.00 per day parking fee (the 35¢ fee covers the credit card processing cost provided by the parking kiosk vendor, Flowbird/Cale). This fee will continue to be passed on to the parking patron for a total of $2.35 for 24 hours daily parking which make utilizing credit card payments both revenue and cost neutral to the VPD.
DISCUSSION:
Public parking trends are phasing out cash payments in lieu of credit card payments exclusively. Many cities, government and private entities now only accept credit card payments for parking at automated payment kiosks. The VPD has 17 parking payment kiosks and collected data indicates that the majority of daily parking payments are through credit cards (approximately 85%). When the VPD began its parking program with electronic kiosks, cash payments was the preferred choice of payment. However, the trend has shifted significantly to credit card payments. Utilizing one form of payment will improve operational efficiency and safety both to the public and staff by eliminating the handling of cash for both payments and collection activities. This will reduce potential liability to both the public and staff by assisting to deter crime and damage to the kiosks by eliminating the temptation to steal cash from patrons and the machines. It will also remove the ability to insert non-monetary objects and foreign currency into the kiosks, which damages the machines and often requires costly repairs.
During their September 12, 2024 regular meeting, the VPD Board voted unanimously to recommend that the City Council approve the elimination of cash payments for daily parking at the Vehicle Parking District payment kiosks. If the Council approves this recommendation staff will communicate the plan to stakeholders and the public via website and social media with the intent to end the cash payment option at the end of December 2024.
Prepared by:
Kirk Pelser
_____________________________
Economic Development Director
Elimination of Cash Payment for VPD Daily Parking