Council Limits RSVP Expansion to Southern Marin

The Mill Valley City Council agreed to expand the city’s downtown parking sticker program to non-residents but limited its boundaries to Sausalito, Tiburon, Belvedere and Corte Madera.

City officials cited a desire to open the popular program beyond the scope of residents of the 94941 zip code to increase revenue for a parking program that faces a budget shortfall.

But in doing so, officials said limiting the RSVP stickers to Southern Marin residents would limit its potential to draw downtown store employees, who are encouraged to buy more expensive employee permits, away from that program. Employee permits, which raise approximately $12,000 annually, cost $120 per year, while the RSVP stickers, which are good from Aug. 1 to July 31, 2012, cost $40.

“It would just be an invitation to the employees to get an RSVP and not have to pay as much,” Vice Mayor Garry Lion said. “It will open it up to employees to come and spend a lot of time and not have to worry about the meters.”

Councilwoman Shawn Marshall said the limitation unfairly penalized shoppers from places like San Rafael and Novato in an effort to prevent downtown employees from making the switch.

“Why are we penalizing potential shoppers when employers should help their employees do the right thing?” she asked.

Mayor Ken Wachtel said employers stood to benefit by getting their employees to use the employee permit program because they wouldn’t be allowed top take up downtown spots in front of stores, as the employee lot is off the square.

“And they wouldn’t have to go out and switch their cars throughout the day,” Wachtel said. “Think of the productivity loss because of the merry-go-round of moving their cars around all day.”

The council also clarified the new pricing structure for the Resident Shopper Vehicle Program (RSVP) stickers, which cars with RSVP stickers to park for free at a metered spot for the maximum amount of time that meter allows (in most cases two hours).

After it from $30 to $40, the council Tuesday set the price for non-residents at $60 and lowered the price for the third and fourth stickers in a household from $65 to $60.

The council voted 4-1 to expand the program and set the prices, with Marshall dissenting specifically on the boundaries.

“Limiting it to Southern Marin feels elitist in a way,” she said. “Either you’re a resident or you’re not and I don’t think we need to differentiate beyond that.”