Deadwood Parking Management Phase 1 Key Takeaways

City of Deadwood Parking Management Plan Ongoing

June 16, 2023

Background

The City of Deadwood experiences ongoing challenges with parking operations and management, especially during the busy times of the year when Historic Deadwood draws hundreds of thousands of visitors. The city is currently undergoing the development of a Parking Management Plan (PMP) in collaboration with national parking experts Walker Consultants.

The purpose of the planning effort is to assess how on and off-street parking in Deadwood is being used, identify issues and opportunities, and develop a plan for efficiently operating and managing public parking now and into the future. The city expects continued growth and change for Historic Deadwood, along with maintaining its status as a premier visitor destination for history, gaming, recreation, and entertainment.

Promoting a high-level of access and customer service for residents, businesses, and visitors, maintaining the unique heritage and vibrancy of Deadwood, and ensuring efficient use of parking resources is a key guiding principle for the city as it operates and manages parking. The city recognizes there is a host of operations and management best practices it needs to employ to efficiently manage existing parking supply and provide maximum customer service for residents, business owners, employees, and visitors to Historic Deadwood.

The PMP will help plan for future growth and changes and serve as a strategic roadmap to guide operations and management.

Current Conditions Assessment First Phase Complete

The project’s first phase involved a thorough current parking conditions assessment, including a comprehensive parking system review and analysis, review of peer communities, stakeholder listening sessions, and public survey.

Public Survey Results

An online survey was launched in late January and closed in early March 2023. A total of 1,317 responses were received on the survey, including from 364 residents, 228 employees, 40 business owners, and 685 visitors. The below summarizes some of the primary key takeaways from survey responses, categorized by parking user type.

• Employee Parking: Many respondents were not aware of the city’s employee permit parking program. Respondents expressed concerns over permit prices, and that permits do not guarantee a place to park, especially an issue during busy periods. Many employees expressed concern over employee safety when accessing parking facilities, and the desire for a free and designated employee parking option, even if it included shuttling to and from a parking facility further away.
• Resident Parking: Resident concerns cited included the impact of special event parking demand on residential streets, and concerns with paid parking, particularly during non-peak times of the year.  
• Event/Visitor Parking: Visitor parking, particularly during busy events, has a significant impact on Deadwood residents, employees, and business owners, and all aspects of the city as a whole. Events bring safety concerns and congestion as vehicles hunt for open spaces, as well as on-street parking pressure along residential streets adjacent to Historic Main Street. Results suggest more information needs to be provided to visitors ahead of time about parking and mobility options, special attention should be paid to parking trailers and oversize vehicles, technology and signage should be leveraged to direct visitors to open spaces, and more reliance should be placed on off-site parking options and shuttling to ease pressure in Historic Deadwood. 

Phase 1 Key Takeaways

The objective of the Phase 1 diagnostic activities was to identify the critical needs, issues, and opportunities that exist with access and parking in Deadwood. These needs, issues, and opportunities answer the question “what are we solving for?” These key takeaways are summarized below, separated into categories.

Parking Operations

• The city needs written and codified internal procedures governing all aspects of parking operations.
• The city’s parking fund is financially healthy; revenues have grown, while expenses have flattened, including the paying off of outstanding debt from the Broadway Parking Ramp.

Communications, Marketing, and Wayfinding

• Improving communications, marketing, and wayfinding is critical for enhancing the efficiency and customer service of the city’s parking system. Improvements are relatively easy and inexpensive; needs include:
  • Enhanced website resources and information.
  • Deliberate parking communication and marketing via the Chamber of Commerce, third-party, and travel outlets to ensure visitors know where and how to park even before they leave to come to Deadwood.
  • Real-time parking availability technology/information for system users.
  • Enhanced signage for drivers and pedestrians directing users to parking facilities, mobility resources, and key destinations.
  • Increased communication to the public about the parking operation, finances, and key performance metrics.

Technology

• Issues have been expressed with the functionality of the pay stations and mobile application.
• Strategies should be considered to increase the ease and convenience of payment collection, particular with new visitors during busy event times.

Parking Management

• Reimagined employee and resident parking programs are needed, including examining the viability of different types of permits (with different price points).
• On-street and off-street rates and time limits should be reexamined for peak and off-peak times in Deadwood; rates and time limits should be a central tool for managing parking demand and improving access.
• Event parking management is a central concern in Deadwood and deserves dedicated resources and strategy. Strategies may include off-site parking, shuttling, staffing, and/or other management tools.
• Special attention needs to be given to accommodating oversize vehicles, particularly during busy events, including providing specific spaces and eliminating externalities these vehicles may cause on other users.

Supporting Mobility

• The Deadwood Trolley (and shuttles in general) is an underutilized tool that could be leveraged to help improve event parking management or improve access options for employees.

Project Next Steps

The PMP is entering its next phase, where the team will be evaluating strategies for improving the current operations and management of existing public parking supply, conducting an analysis of future parking needs in Historic Deadwood based on proposed development projects, and finalizing a feasibility assessment of sites for a potential future parking garage.

Look for additional updates on the process throughout the summer on this page. The process is anticipated to culminate in the adoption of a formal PMP in Fall 2023.