An agenda item during the last Cupertino City Council meeting on July 7 was a parking study for the Cupertino branch of the Santa Clara Public Library. Difficulty finding parking at the civic center has been an ongoing complaint of library patrons as well as City Hall and Community Hall users.
The study by Kimley-Horn, a subconsultant to Pakpour Consulting Group, identified options and provided recommendations to improve parking utilization. Currently, the civic center has a deficit of 25 spaces, which will balloon to over 200 if the proposed library expansion is built. It is highly necessary at this time and for future construction to not only increase parking spots available, but to implement strategies to decrease the total number of needed parking spots.
The City Council has had several approval votes on the Regnart Creek Trail project, with an expected final one in September 2020 and City Staff have begun construction on the McClellan Separated Bikeway. Together they are projected to reduce Civic Center parking demands by 10 spaces in addition to their recreational, sustainability, and active transportation benefits.
City Staff confirmed on July 7 that the Regnart Trail connection to the McClellan lanes will increase Civic Center parking supply by 10 spaces when completed.
The City Council has had several approval votes on the Regnart Creek Trail project, with an expected final one in September 2020 and City Staff have begun construction on the McClellan Separated Bikeway. Together they are projected to reduce Civic Center parking demands by 10 spaces in addition to their recreational, sustainability, and active transportation benefits.
The proposed Library Expansion Project will likely create an enomous need for more parking, with an estimate of 200 extra vehicles. It should be noted that the secondary environmental impacts of these additional vehicles will be part of the environmental review for the expansion project, though parking is not part of any CEQA analysis.
Current parking stalls at the Civic Center
City Staff recommendations on how to improve parking at Cupertino Civic Center
Increase parking supply:
Convert a space from car to motorcycle parking on Rodrigues
Move the 4-minute bookdrop stalls to Torre Ave
Decrease demand for parking:
Add secure bike parking at City Hall
Encourage telecommuting
Designate carpool spaces
Continue “guaranteed ride home” program
Education program to encourage walking/biking to library by patrons
Shuttle bus to library from schools
Parking cash-out ($5/day) for employees
Stipends for employees for biking, walking, carpooling & public transit
Restrict all parking to 2 hours
Manage Parking:
Add valet parking for large events
Ideas for parking improvements not recommended by the City Staff include putting parking spaces on Library Field (paving over currently grassy portions), adding a new one-story parking deck or switching to diagonal spaces on Torre (very expensive), or sharing parking lots with nearby Eaton Elementary or Town Center (not always available).
More information
The information in this article is solely the opinion of the author and Walk-Bike Cupertino and does not reflect the opinions of any other organization or entity. For more information, contact WBC at info@walkbikecupertino.org.