A solution for downtown parking in Jefferson City can be as elusive as a coveted parking spot.
For some, the latest hope of finding a solution is tied to a proposed second downtown parking garage. The City Council is considering a land purchase on West McCarty Street for a four-layer garage.
But regardless of how the council proceeds on the garage proposal, it would only be a piece of a downtown parking solution, Public Works Director Matt Morasch said. There's more work to be done either way, he said.
The city needs to review if it is allocating the right types of parking in the right places and how much it costs to use those spaces, as well as developing a plan to renovate the existing garage, he said.
The last time the city conducted such a study was 2005, Morasch said. An update of that study will look at where things are now and what the needs are.
"Can we add more hourly (parking)?" he said. "I know the committees here want to talk about the 90-minute parking on High Street, maybe they want meters there now."
The study would likely take a year to complete, Morasch said, between staff observation, gathering input from the public and figuring out how to address the need.
Staff would meet with organizations such as the Downtown Association along with hosting events such as an open house to gain input.
"Just like most things, it can be a little controversial to change these things - just changing allocations even," he said. "If you start taking a bunch of hourly spots away, businesses may not like that because they say, 'I need those hourly spots in front of my business so my customers will come in here. They don't want to walk two blocks.'"
The study would also look at the parking rates and whether they could be raised or lowered in certain parts of town.
"Somebody asked me, for example, 'Why can't we raise the rates on Broadway and make it all-day parking,'" he said. "Well, you have people trying to visit St. Peter's Church; there's a funeral there every other day at least.
"Then you have a school there. If the lobbyists park there, where are the parents going to get in?" he said.
The city could go block by block with people suggesting reasons to change rates or the length of time a person can park there and others giving reasons not to change anything, he said.
Beyond the parking lot locations and rates, he said, the city needs to examine its existing garage on Capitol Avenue. Morasch projects the garage needs around $1 million in renovations soon.
In March, the City Council approved work on the elevator, which is basically a new elevator, he said. Council members approved $45,000 for the project to come from the parking fund.
But the garage needs more work, he said. For instance, some of the metal support beams need sandblasted to remove rust and need to be resealed. In some spots, the concrete needs patched or replaced, he said.
"Handrails are rusted out," Morasch said. "Steps, maybe the whole stairwell, needs replaced. That's pretty intrusive work. We don't know the exact scope of it."
He said the $1 million seemed like a good planning number to rehabilitate the garage, but the actual amount could be higher or lower once staff looks at it in more detail.
"I could see it costing $1 million," he said. "People might get shocked at that. But once you get into it, it's a good planning number."
One issue, Morasch said, is where to send people who park in the garage while the work is ongoing.
The city leases 408 of the 540 spaces in the garage monthly to customers. The rest are allotted for hourly customers.
One option, if the City Council approves a second parking garage, would be to build it and redirect people there while the current garage gets work done, he said.