By Paul Thompson
Northeast News

Parking enforcement in the Kansas City, Missouri downtown corridor is about to get more rigorous, thanks to the redoubled efforts of the Kansas City Police Department (KCPD).

KCPD stepped up to the plate after concerns were raised about the enforcement capabilities of a third-party company – LAZ Parking Limited, LLC – who was approved by the Council in late 2017 to handle enforcement and other parking-related duties.

However, during the February 7 Finance and Governance committee meeting, a new ordinance proposed a $145,000 transfer to the Kansas City Police Department to handle downtown parking enforcement duties through the end of the fiscal year. Previously, LAZ Parking had been contracted to perform these duties in the downtown corridor through the end of the fiscal year for a sum of $325,000.

The committee substitute for Ordinance No. 180061, proposed on Feb. 7, hinted at the reason for the move away from LAZ Parking.

“This was originally planned to be performed by a third-party private contractor and administered by the Public Works Department, however concerns arose regarding the enforcement capability of a private company that is not a law enforcement agency,” reads a passage from the ordinance fact sheet.

The specific concerns revolved around the fact that all tickets written by LAZ Parking would have been required to be signed by the City Prosecutor before becoming official citations.

“Any time we have a third party, if you will, with the power to do a citation, that power is essentially extended from an agreement between PD and the Prosecutor’s Office,” said Scott Wagner, 1st District Councilman and chair of the Finance & Governance committee.

Wagner suggested that prior KCPD Chief of Police Darryl Forté had expressed a desire to distance the Police Department from downtown parking enforcement. New Chief of Police Rick Smith, meanwhile, has sent signals that he’d prefer to handle parking enforcement in-house. With the Police Department now committed to enforcing parking regulations downtown, the need for the third-party company to perform the task essentially evaporated.

“Clearly, there was not much in the way of enforcement. The thing that we had talked about for the last several years is that citations have gone down precipitously,” Wagner said. “We just needed to do something differently to help relieve some of the parking issues downtown.”

That ‘something different’ was ultimately short-lived. It was only on the morning of Thursday, November 30, after all, when the City Council’s Transportation and Infrastructure committee passed along the $325,000 contract with LAZ Parking to the full City Council. The contract had called for LAZ Parking to handle on-street parking enforcement and meter operations management in the downtown TDD corridor. The third-party provider would be sub-contracted by the Public Works Department to help the city more efficiently turn over short-term parking spaces in the downtown corridor.

“The goal of this authorization is to allow for parking enforcement within the Streetcar TDD. We expect there to be consistent and fair enforcement within the Streetcar TDD,” said Bruce Campbell of Public Works on Nov. 30. “They have the flexibility that we’re looking for, and the experience that we’re looking for.”

The contract would have created 12 total positions and hit a 10% goal for MBE-WBE participation. Campbell suggested that the agreement would have initially paid $325,000 to LAZ Parking through the end of the fiscal year, with four subsequent renewals to follow. Beginning next year, a renewal of $740,000 would have been initiated, with a 3% annual increase thereafter. At the time, LAZ Parking indicated their intention was to begin operating in the downtown corridor by January 1, 2018.

Though downtown parking enforcement will no longer be handled by LAZ Parking, Public Works Director Sherri McIntyre suggested that negotiations were ongoing with the company for other parking-related services stipulated under the initial contract.

“This still does leave us funds to continue to negotiate with the vendor that we had originally selected to help continue to provide good oversight management of our parking enforcement, as well as our on-street meter operations,” McIntyre said. “So I think this is a good partnership and a win overall for everyone.”

For area drivers who regularly park downtown, the latest developments will mean more tickets and closer monitoring of turnover around parking meters. During the Feb. 7 Finance and Governance committee meeting, McIntyre touted the new parking enforcement plan, which she said will be ramping up in the downtown area over the next 60-90 days. At first, KCPD will issue written warnings to help ease the public into the reinvigorated parking enforcement efforts.

“We’re looking to utilize our assets out on the streets the best that we can,” McIntyre said. “You need to pay at the meters, and you need to be cognizant of the time restrictions that exist out there, because they exist for a reason.”

During that Feb. 7 committee meeting, 6th District Councilman Kevin McManus asked the question that was likely on the minds of members of the Transportation & Infrastructure committee who had approved the contract with LAZ Parking back on November 30.

“I recall in T&I we approved, like you mentioned, that private vendor ordinance,” McManus said. “Is that still in effect, or will they be providing any services in conjunction with this? Or is that separate and apart from this?”

Campbell responded that the other portions of that LAZ Parking contract – concerning the management of on-street parking meter operations, collections, maintenance and repairs, and potential technology improvements – was still applicable.

Ultimately, the ordinance was advanced out of committee with a recommendation of do pass on February 7. Just a day later, on February 8, the legislation reached the full Council.

“The solution that is now coming before us today has to do with the transferring of that obligation, if you will, from the Public Works Department to the Kansas City Police Department,” Wagner said at the time. “That is a very simplified way of saying it, I think.”

Fifth District Councilwoman Alissia Canady clarified the situation for the Council and observers alike.

“We passed an ordinance a couple of months ago giving the authority to Public Works to be able to enforce parking downtown,” Canady said. “Are we now taking that responsibility back from Public Works and bringing it back to the Police Department?”

The answer was yes, and Wagner later summarized the City’s position on the matter.

“Part of the issue as to why PD was looked on as a better alternative is because then you cut out the middleman,” Wagner said. “I think it’s more about the efficiencies, with PD actually doing the work.”