TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THRU: Jarad Hildenbrand, City Manager
FROM: Christopher Cash, Public Works Director
1. Subject
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Establishment of permit parking for the Downtown Commercial Core paid parking areas. Resolution No. 11642.
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2. Summary
Adoption of Resolution No. 11642 will enable staff to offer parking permit options for residents and businesses located within the downtown paid parking area and establish the fee for business parking permits in this area.
3. Recommended Action
recommendation
Adopt Resolution No. 11642. A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Orange establishing permit program; permit fees; within paid parking meter zones.
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4. Fiscal Impact
None.
5. Strategic Plan Goals
Goal 5: Improve Infrastructure, Mobility, and Technology
6. Discussion and Background
On February 25, 2025 the Orange City Council adopted Ordinance 02-25 establishing Parking Meter Zones, Operations, Fees, and Procedures for the paid parking program. After releasing a Request for Proposals in May 2025, a parking contractor, ACE Parking, LLC (ACE) was chosen to provide parking management services to the City for the paid parking area.
As part of the implementation of the paid parking program, staff has assessed the need to provides some level of permit parking within the paid parking area for those residents and businesses who are adjacent. Ordinance 02-25 allows the Public Works Director to establish permits within the paid parking footprint, in exchange for an administrative fee to be determined by staff as well as set time and location restrictions for these permits.
For residents adjacent to paid parking areas who use City parking lots for their residential parking, staff has proposed a no-fee permit option. The no-fee permit would be consistent with existing permitting of residents in the adjoining mixed-use buildings in the Plaza area. These permits will allow permitted residents to park in the paid City parking lots, and will be valid 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. Eligibility for the residential permit program is proposed as follows:
• For residents living above or within mixed-use buildings in the downtown paid parking footprint (must provide lease, utility bill, etc. for verification)
For businesses who have employees that cannot avail themselves of the free parking available in the paid parking area, staff are proposing a permit fee at a rate of $50 per month for each permit. Permits would be payable in no less than six-month increments. The fee is also based on recovery of overhead costs for administering the paid parking program. These permits will allow permitted employees to park in in the paid City parking lots and will be valid Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Eligibility for the business permit program is proposed as follows:
• For businesses located within the paid parking zone
• Full-time employees
• Permits must be sponsored by the business, not individual employees
• Permit is assigned to a vehicle, not a person
Once the permit program is established, residents and businesses will be invited to submit applications through the City website. City staff and ACE will evaluate the application for eligibility based on set criteria, and if eligible, the permit will be processed, and the license plate information will be entered into the enforcement system. The residential and business permits will be enforced through license plate recognition (LPR) technology. Permit holders will not receive a physical permit, but the license plate for the permitted vehicle will be registered in the City’s permit system. If a permit holder changes vehicles, the resident or business must notify the City to update the permit.
7. ATTACHMENTS
• Resolution No. 11642