District of West Vancouver council has directed staff to report back in the second quarter of 2023 with the next steps on implementing pay parking in Lighthouse Park, Whytecliff Park, and Nelson Canyon Park.
At an upcoming council meeting, West Vancouver will seek a report on possible costs, ongoing enforcement, and development of an on-street parking policy to support the program.
District council wants staff to report back in quarter two of 2023 on next steps on moving forward a pay parking pilot program for Lighthouse Park, Whytecliff Park and Nelson Canyon Park. The staff is also expected to provide a report on revenue projections, to verify that Pay by Phone technology is viable at the three destination parks, other relevant information on implementing the pay parking pilot.
In March this year, council directed staff to implement a two-year seasonal pay parking program in the following destination parks: Lighthouse Park, Whytecliff Park, and Nelson Canyon Park/Whyte Lake Trailhead.
Successive councils have been discussing pay parking within destination District parks for the last 25 years. The primary drivers around these discussions include: an additional source of revenue and potential cost recovery opportunity for Parks, and a means of transportation demand management (TDM).
Currently, the District does not have a comprehensive parking management policy. On-street parking regulations have evolved inconsistently over time, influenced largely by local residents and without a Council endorsed methodology or criteria for objective evaluation.
In 2020, temporary parking restrictions were introduced in a reactionary manner to many local neighbourhoods with park or beach access adjacency due to increase in visits because of COVID-19. These restrictions were introduced in response to the overspill effects of on-street parking impacting these residential neighbourhoods.
Gale Leitch says
Parking for residents of West Vancouver should be FREEEEEEEEEE. These are OUR parks. We pay for their maintenance. Parking has always been free. Visitors from outside West Vancouver can pay, but not West Vancouver residents. It’s only these self-serving city hall employees who keep wanting raises and apartments built for them so they can live next door are costing taxpayers a fortune, while not working hard for their money. Cut their salaries. There is no benefit to living in West Vancouver if city hall destroys all the benefits.
Sandy Hogarth says
I live at Whytecliffe parking and when they closed the parking lot during COVID my dead end street became a raceway. My resident parking became full. I couldn’t get company parking for my own house and I pay a fortune in property taxes. WHY the parks. It will only create havoc for all residents as they will park on the limited parking available to us. This is a very bad idea and should be taken to task. Count me in.