Councillor suggests hiking rates to pay for Millennium parkade repairs

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This article was published 09/01/2024 (651 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The City of Winnipeg took a key step toward spending $30 million to repair its downtown Millennium Parkade on Tuesday, following questions over whether parking rates should rise to help cover the cost.

On Tuesday, council’s public works committee approved a plan to restore the underground heated parking facility, which was built in 1974, pending final council approval.

Coun. Janice Lukes, the committee’s chairwoman, told reporters the city should consider whether parking rates should be raised to help cover the cost in the future, though she doesn’t expect immediate changes.

“It’s going to cost $30 million to fix… I’m going to be asking questions about increasing the parking rates… I think there’s a lot higher rates in other cities and it’s a premium parking spot so it should have a premium price,” said Lukes.

The city’s website says casual parking at Millennium costs $2.25 per half hour, with $17 daytime maximum (6 a.m. to 6 p.m.) and $25 daily maximum options, as of Jan. 1.

Monthly 12-hour reserved parking costs $263.

Staff warned councillors that patrons are sensitive to price, so higher rates can lead drivers to park elsewhere.

The parkade is currently expected to earn about $825,000 in net income per year, officials said, nearing pre-pandemic levels.

Lukes said because the parkade provides good value, maintaining it is a priority.

“I think it is worth repairing… It’s a highly used parkade and it will continue to be a highly used parkade because of the Canada Life (arena), because it’s downtown, because of the (attached) library. It’s a beautiful parkade, it’s heated, it’s nice, it’s secure,” she said.

A staff report suggests reducing the dividend the Winnipeg Parking Authority provides to the city’s general revenues by an average of $2 million in each of the next seven years to finance the repairs and cover any revenue lost due to construction.

The current plan calls for repairs to begin in 2025, starting with concrete slab work, as well as replacement of obsolete lighting and an air handler unit. Additional upgrades would follow in 2028 and 2030.

Coun. Russ Wyatt voted against the motion. In an interview, Wyatt said he thinks the parking authority could find enough savings to cover the cost, instead of cutting the dividend.

“Their costs related to their operating are bigger than what they should be… the hit to the (city’s) operating budget, I question,” he said.

Earlier in the meeting, the committee decided to take no action on a motion to offer free bus rides to people who are eligible for the city’s low-income Winnipeg Transit pass.

The decision came after city staff noted the price to implement the idea would be difficult to estimate, since fare-free transit services are only offered in a few European and American cities.

“There’s very limited research on what (would happen) if it’s actually zero fare… I think we’d be breaking some ground in a way just in applying this to our context,” said Kevin Sturgeon, a senior Winnipeg Transit planner.

Lukes said the idea isn’t affordable as the city has a tight budget.

“We’re coming out of a $240-million hit from COVID and we’re going to have to be very cautious and sensible in how we spend our money,” she said.

Meanwhile, the committee delayed its vote for 60 days on referring the cost to replace the Arlington Bridge to the city’s budget process. City officials suddenly shut down the bridge for safety reasons in November, while an engineering assessment of the structure is expected in February.

Bike Winnipeg told the committee access to the site was a “critical” connection for cyclists and pedestrians and its closure causes lengthy detours. Lukes said she is interested in determining whether cyclists and pedestrians can safely use the bridge before a final decision on vehicle access is reached.

“If there’s a possibility of it being open for people to walk and bike over, I, 100 per cent, would support that,” Lukes told reporters.

The committee also voted to increase some street bylaw fines in hopes of deterring people from breaking the rules, while also ordering a cross-jurisdictional review to determine how other cities handle such penalties and enforcement.

Lukes said that process could lead to further fine hikes.

All of the above matters are still subject to council votes.

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

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