Parking Management: Best Practices in Pasadena, California

This paper describes how, with the public’s extensive reliance on automobile travel for most trips in the United States, parking has become a necessity for mobility and sometimes a conflicting and confusing situation for many drivers. Certainly the management of parking is a challenge for both planning and managing thriving communities. Lack of accessible parking can hurt businesses and decrease the quality of life for residents; too much unused parking creates other problems. Increasingly the design and operation of parking policies and programs are important considerations in achieving livable communities. The City of Pasadena, California is an active community with 22 square miles and 133,000 people located approximately 10 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles. Its growth prompted the construction of one of the nation’s first highways, the 110 Arroyo Parkway. Between 1980 and 2000, vehicular traffic in Pasadena and the Los Angeles region in general grew at a rate of about 1.4 percent per year. Pasadena has a rich architectural heritage and a distinctive historic character. It is home to renowned cultural and higher education institutions including the California Institute of Technology, the Pacific Asia Museum, the Norton Simon Museum, the Art Center College of Design, Fuller Theological Seminary and Pasadena City College. Along with ten libraries, performing theatres and other places of interest and activity, they collectively contribute to the vitality, economy and prestige of the City. Pasadena’s historic districts include Old Pasadena, Prospect, Civic Center, Civic Center-Financial, Ross Grove, Washington Square, Orange Heights, Arroyo Terrace, and Garfield Heights Landmark District. In one neighborhood alone, more than 700 homes have been renovated and restored. Pasadena also benefits from a thriving economy. The City achieved a high-performing, diverse economy based on, telecommunications and utilities, health, engineering and construction, financial services, higher education and general retail. Pasadena’s 6.1% vacancy for office space in 2004 was the lowest in Los Angeles County. It is a major regional center of commerce in the Los Angeles metropolitan area attracting businesses, employees, students and visitors. Managing parking resources to address the various needs of the community has been underway for many years and is an integral part of economic development initiatives, neighborhood protection programs and citywide land use and mobility plans. Pasadena’s comprehensive parking program is also an important component of the City’s recently adopted plans and operating policies. This paper provides an overview of the parking program, describes elements that have contributed to its success, and outlines technology upgrades that are being considered to further improve the program’s efficiency and effectiveness.