The decision to delay awarding a contract for pay parking services downtown for two months has pleased opponents but worried some city representatives.
During Monday night's meeting, council voted 6-3 to postpone accepting staff's recommendation to award Aparc Systems with a $1.06 million contract for pay parking equipment and licence plate recognition system.
The Vancouver-based Aparc was one of six bids the city received in a response to a request for proposal which closed in mid April.
When council meets again - likely at the end of August as a committee of the whole - to discuss the parking issue, they will hear from the opponents as well as city staff to get a full picture of what the proposed new system would look like as well as what the financial situation relating to on-street parking downtown looks like.
But although the delay allows for more information and clarification to come to light, some members of council expressed concern over how the wait may be perceived to those trying to do business with the city.
"If we do not go ahead, are we at risk of being seen as dealing in bad faith with those who are bidding on this project? What would that mean for the city of Prince George and our reputation?" Coun. Cameron Stolz asked.
City manager Beth James said the six companies who responded to the city's proposal request likely spent a bit of money in the process.
"So that could, in effect, create a problem for other procurements when we go out to look at other things companies may choose not to make the investment," she said.
While corporate services director Kathleen Soltis said she didn't foresee an issue with going back to the bidders and letting them know of the delay in a decision, she was more concerned about the ability to get the job done if council does eventually vote to go ahead.
"Our timeframe has been tight and it may not be doable," she said.
The Prince George Chamber of Commerce said they were happy with the decision to table the decision until the Sept. 23 council meeting and are urging businesses to write to council with their concerns.
"We support the ongoing efforts of the [Downtown Business Improvement Association] to work with the city to find a viable solution to the parking issue," said chamber president Derek Dougherty.
According to DBIA president Rod Holmes, the association collected 2,700 signatures on their petition asking for more consultation from the city, including from businesses as far removed from the downtown core as the Bon Voyage Plaza west of College Heights.
Among the group's suggestions is to retain the free parking downtown, but beef up the enforcement with the licence-plate recognition technology. By their estimation, it would only cost up to $50,000 instead of the more than $1 million proposed for the full pay parking system.
Over the last five years, the city has recorded a net loss in the operation of on-street parking. After a net revenue of around $80,000 in 2007, the annual losses in 2008 to 2012 ranged from $75,498 to $132,229.
This is in addition to the $66,150 worth of unpaid fines the city also has on the books.
The DBIA also supports towing violators of the free, time-limited system and Holmes pointed to Kelowna and Nanaimo as cities with effective towing policies.
Holmes said the public would be surprised to hear how much money DBIA member businesses pay into the parking system.
"The Downtown Business Improvement Association represents the entire C1 zoning, and the C1 commercial zoning for property is, I believe, the highest rate of taxation," he said.
Businesses in the within the zone pay a special parking levy on their property in excess of $800,000 per year, according to the DBIA.
