Parking at Lake Worth Beach

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Mark Sykes, Beach Parking Division Manager

Juan Ruiz, Leisure Services Director, gave last night's presentation on the Parking Division. Parking revenue is expected to be over $1 million dollars in the new fiscal year that begins on October 1, 2013. This year, parking revenue is estimated at $883,198 with the year ending September 30.

Mark Sykes is the Field Supervisor of this division under Juan Ruiz's Recreation Department and the only full-time employee in the Parking Division. He has 5 part-time assistants ( Part-time is 29 hours a week or less and the city does not have to pay benefits) and he is asking for one more full-time employee in order to increase parking security, oversight for parking collections and consistency of operations.

At the moment, they are in the process of recommending some updates to our ordinances and our signage. They have implemented the pay by cell phone option rather than someone walking back to their car to feed the meter.   ParkMobile

Questions that went unanswered:

• Cost for one full-time employee with benefits

• Decal parking - no report

• Fines - no history.  The draft budget indicates a revenue stream for violations at $100,000 in the new budget year but there is no break-down offered for the three metered areas in our city.

• Said there were no parking meters in the downtown. What happened to the L-Street parking lot meter on Lucerne?

• Wanted additional inventory in order to repair meters quickly...never gave a cost

• Did not mention income from meters and fines at the boat ramp or in the downtown. Three sections of this division should be separate each having its own line items on the budget-- beach, boat ramp and the downtown for revenue and costs.

• Did not mention the cost of the cell phone option to the city and the income expected from this option.The pay-by-cellphone system has been installed on parking meters at Lake Worth Beach. The Parkmobile system, also used in West Palm Beach and Hollywood, allows users to pay the $2-an-hour parking fee at our beach with their cellphones. Users pay an extra 35 cents per transaction.

If you are asking the Commission to approve of a budget increase, you must give them the costs.