During a special meeting of the Manitou Springs City Council on Feb. 11, the council voted unanimously to approve a resolution to apply to dissolve the Manitou Springs Metropolitan District, which owns and operates the Wichita and Smischny parking lots. Councilors Judith Chandler and Michelle Whetherhult were not present for the meeting.
“For over a decade the City of Manitou Springs has tried to collaborate with the Metro District on various projects,” said Mayor Pro Tem Natalie Johnson. “While this process has not always been fruitful we still recognize the work of all the Metro board members and their volunteer time managing their parking facilities. That being said, we believe that it’s time to manage these assets in a more coordinated fashion.”
She added that, while the resolution was not an enjoyable step for the council to take, she hopes that the funding generated through the Metro parking lots can be used to bolster the Business Improvement District (BID) or result in the formation of a new downtown beautification board to manage these funds.
“It is imperative that the voice of our business community is not lost during this transition. By working with the BID and Metro on various options we can emerge stronger than ever,” Johnson said.
It seems to me that there’s some bad blood, for lack of better term. – Mike Casey
Formed in 1989, the Metro District provided public parking for visitors and tourists.
“At the time the City was unable or unwilling to acquire and manage a public parking lot,” explained Mayor John Graham. “I think for most of the parking lots’ life it was reasonably successful. The district purchased the Wichita Motel, demolished it, and developed it into a parking lot, and the City has cooperated with it and certainly up through the last IGA [inter-governmental agreement] the City was responsible for essentially all the maintenance – plowing, striping the paint, and so forth…
“Recently the IGA was dissolved and now I think council’s belief is that the Metro’s original mission has been met. The City developed its own parking program. We manage it. It’s been a pretty fruitful operation. We have several other lots, notably the Hiawatha Canyon Lot and presumably the Dillon Parking Lot which will be developed.”
Graham added that dissolution of the Metro District would simplify parking operations and increase efficiency by creating a single administrative approach, preventing duplicated efforts and reducing confusion over rates and policies.
City and Metro relationship had ‘devolved’
Recently there has been friction between the City and the Metro District over newly renovated bathrooms and amenities the City provided.
“With this new management with the Metro, somebody – as I’m sure you know – authorized the closure of this very expensive bathroom, took away the benches, took away the trash cans,” said Manitou Springs resident and downtown business owner Mike Casey during public comment. “Even the poop bags are gone. It seems to me that there’s some bad blood, for lack of better term.”
Graham acknowledged the acrimonious relationship with the Metro District.
“The relationship has been a little contentious for some time,” he said. “It’s sort of devolved … I think certainly the idea of closing the bathroom was something city council didn’t anticipate. We had allocated funds to have those bathrooms made ADA-compliant, the bathrooms in the Wichita Lot, and I think it’s an important part of our role … to be a hospitable community, to provide … access to public restrooms, so we thought we were doing the right thing by making them ADA-compliant.”
Graham indicated the bathroom closure was a factor in dissolving the Metro.
“I think that did trigger this most recent thinking,” he said. “It did on my part.”
Councilor Julie Wolfe noted that there would not be any financial impact on dissolving the Metro District. “The City would not have to pay anything to acquire the parking lots because right now they’re just owned by this District, which is like a quasi-governmental entity,” she said. “We would just take it over, so we’re not spending any City money to do this. We’re just trying to create more efficiencies in the City so we have less duplication and more efficient use of funds.”
Hang tags return
In other Manitou Springs parking news, the City announced this week that it will return to using stickers and hang tags for the residential parking program.
“The City of Manitou Springs is making key updates to its parking program in direct response to feedback from residents, businesses, and visitors,” read a Feb. 11 Facebook post. “To improve enforcement, ease of use, and accessibility, the City is reinstating stickers for residents and hang tags for guests, and businesses effective immediately.”
Last month the City had announced a new digital parking program, which required residents to register their vehicles, and any guest vehicles, in an online system. City Councilors Julie Wolfe and Judith Chandler expressed frustration over the lack of council involvement in the decision, and residents described the move as “authoritarian.”
“These updates are a direct result of listening to our residents, visitors, businesses, and City Council,” said Juan Alvarez, director of Mobility and Parking, in the Facebook post.
