The city of San Francisco may be putting the brakes on a plan to extend the hours people must pay for metered parking.
In July, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency is scheduled to extend the pay hours to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and eliminate free parking on Sunday.
But the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in a unanimous vote last week asked SFMTA to delay implementing the extended hours while they take a closer look at how it might impact businesses. Several supervisors said they heard from store and restaurant owners and other business owners worried that extending paid parking hours will drive customers away.
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"The way it is being proposed and rolled out will have a significant impact to a lot of businesses and will have a significant impact to a lot of different neighborhoods," District 11 Supervisor Ahsfa Safai said.
Dean Preston, supervisor for District 5, agreed.
"I’m particularly concerned about the Sunday hours and potential impact on churches and so forth," Preston said.
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SFMTA still has the power to move forward with the longer paid meter hours, but it’s unlikely the agency will exercise that power after the supervisors' unanimous vote.
The agency is scheduled to begin the new extended hours in the Fisherman’s Wharf area July 23.
Winston Anyarin, manager at Blazing Saddles rentals, says he and his workers already use too much of their hard-earned income for parking.
"I think not only should we delay it, but we should find a way to help local businesses survive," he said, adding he’d like the supervisors and SFMTA to come up with a free parking plan for people who work in the city.
A group of visitors to the city over the weekend told NBC Bay Area parking already is too expensive and too scarce in San Francisco.
"It was so hard to find parking," said Angelica Tumandao of Stockton. "We paid in the parking garage, like $3 every 15 minutes."
SFMTA, which operates 28,000 parking meters in the city, says money from the extended hours could raise nearly $20 million and help save a few service lines on the financially troubled Muni.
The city is expected to complete its economic impact study by the end of September, so for now it’s unlikely SFMTA will implement the changes this summer.
