GUIDELINES FOR EVENTS HELD ON CITY OWNED

AND CITY-OPERATED PARKING FACILITIES, INCLUDING REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY PUBLIC PARKING FACILITIES

 

 

The City of San José currently operates public parking facilities within the City of San José.  With a few exceptions, either the City or the Redevelopment Agency (“Agency”) owns these parking facilities.  The City operates public parking facilities primarily to provide parking for patrons of local businesses, cultural venues and special events in San José, for employees of local businesses, San José residents, and for other people visiting the City of San José. However, the City has determined that, under limited circumstances, the City would benefit from allowing non-parking use of certain parking facilities for “events” from time to time.  These guidelines set forth the conditions under which the City will consider allowing events to occur on parking facilities owned and/or operated by the City.  An “event” is considered any use of space within the parking facility for a purpose other than parking of cars or storage of construction equipment.

 

Both the City and Agency expressly retain full control over the parking facilities they own.  The City and the Agency do not intend in any way to create a public forum, nor to create a limited or designated public forum, in any parking facility and intend to retain the non-public forum character of the parking facilities.

 

Only events approved by the City’s Director of the Department of Conventions, Arts and Entertainment (“Director”) pursuant to these guidelines will be authorized on City owned and/or operated public parking facilities.  Before the Director shall consider an event, the Director shall determine that the event either provides San José with cultural enrichment, economic enhancement, recreational or entertainment opportunities, or promotes the City of San José, and that income generated from the event shall be generally used for such purposes, and not purely for commercial profit.  Any person wishing to use a public parking facility owned and/or operated by the City for a non-parking use shall submit a complete application to the Office of Cultural Affairs, 4 N. Second Street, Suite 450, San José, CA  95113.  Applications received at least sixty (60) days prior to the date of the proposed event will be reviewed by the City.  The City may be unable to process any application received less than sixty (60) days prior to the date requested.  A copy of the application form may be obtained from the Office of Cultural Affairs at (408) 277-5144.

 

Any person applying for permission to hold an event shall be financially responsible for the event and for complying with all of the provisions of these guidelines, and shall be referred to as the “Applicant.”  The Director may enact further administrative guidelines to implement these provisions.

 

 


A.                 CRITERIA

 

The Director shall evaluate the following factors when reviewing an application to hold an event on a City-owned or City-operated parking facility:

1.                  Only parking facilities unencumbered by restrictions preventing non-parking use or inconsistent with allowing non-parking use, such as bond covenants, prior contractual arrangements or lease restrictions, are available for non-parking related uses.  The City or Agency may enter into future contractual relationships that may limit or prohibit non-parking use on any parking facility. 

2.                  Exhibit A sets forth the parking facilities that may be made available for events, which list may be increased or decreased from time to time, as reasonably determined by the City’s Director of the Department of Transportation. 

3.                  No parking facility may be used for events more than six (6) times per calendar year, and an Applicant may not use any one parking facility more than twice in any calendar year.

 

4.                  To be eligible for consideration, an event must use a minimum of fifty (50) spaces at all times during the event for events in surface parking lots, or one full floor of a parking garage.

 

5.         All signage shall comply with Title 23 of the Municipal Code (the “Sign Ordinance”) including without limitation the temporary sign requirements set forth in Title 23, and with any more restrictive provisions of these guidelines.

 

6.                  Unless specifically approved in writing by the Director, amplified sound will not be permitted at any event.

 

7.                  An event will not be permitted if the Director of the Department of Transportation determines that the demand for parking at that time, including the demand created by the event, exceeds the capacity of the remaining parking spaces in the parking facility, along with the capacity of nearby parking facilities.  If an event is denied because of high parking demand on the days or times requested, and an event was previously approved at the same parking facility on the same weekday, the Director of the Department of Transportation shall give specific reasons why the demand during this event differs from the previously approved event(s).

 

8.                  All events must provide appropriate safety precautions for pedestrians, as approved by the Director of Transportation.  Such precautions may include, without limitation, safety dividers approved by the City and installed at the Applicant’s sole cost.  The Director of Transportation must also approve the traffic flow plan for any partial use of a parking facility.

 

 

 

 

 

9.                  The Applicant shall be responsible for obtaining all permits prior to commencement of the event, which may include, without limitation, City permits (tent, canopy, pyrotechnic, carnival, tow zone), State of California Alcoholic Beverage Control one-day liquor permits, Santa Clara County temporary event food permit, and State of California Franchise Tax Board temporary seller’s permit.

 

10.              Applicants shall pay such daily use fees and charges for use of the parking facility as set forth by Resolution in the Master Parking Rate Schedule as established by the City Council. Applicant shall pay in full these fees and charges to the Department of Transportation no later than eight (8) business days prior to the event.  To receive final City approval of an event, the City must receive the full amount of the daily use.

 

11.       In addition to the foregoing fees, the Applicant shall reimburse the City within thirty (30) days of invoice, for the cost of any City services required by the Director as a condition for approval of the event, such as traffic control (including police officers) or any other reasonable costs resulting from the event that are associated with providing City services.

 

 

 

B.        CONDITIONS APPLICABLE TO ANY EVENT HELD ON CITY PARKING FACILITIES

 

Each Applicant for an event approved by the City shall sign a facility use agreement, in the form developed by the Director, which shall provide, among other things:

 

1.                  Detailed description of the event and activities planned, parking spaces used, the square footage to be used for the event, and the location of the parking facility used, and estimated number of persons attending the event.

 

2.                  Insurance in amounts as determined by the City’s Risk Manager as set forth on Exhibit B or as determined by the City’s Risk Manager, verification of which is to be approved by the City’s Risk Manager prior to commencement of event setup.  All required insurance shall be maintained for the duration of the event, including setup, dismantling and cleanup.

 

3.                  If at any time, the City learns that the description provided by the Applicant and as described in the facility use agreement, is not complete in a material manner or is misleading in any material way, then the Director may impose additional requirements, and/or terminate the Applicant’s facility use agreement, at the City’s reasonable discretion.

 

4.                  The event must provide adequate event security (private or police officers) and traffic control at levels approved by the San José Police Department, and emergency medical services at levels established by the Director.  These services shall be at the event’s sole cost and expense.

 

5.                  The Applicant will be responsible for obtaining all required authorizations, permits, insurance, bonds/waivers and site inspections for the event.

 

6.                  No alteration to the parking facility will be allowed, unless approved in advance in writing by the Director.

 

7.                  Any temporary modifications, including lighting, will be the sole responsibility of the Applicant.  The Applicant shall be responsible for returning the facility to its original condition immediately following the event.

8.                  The City reserves the right to repair any City property damaged as a result of any activity connected with the event.  The Applicant shall reimburse the City for such repairs within thirty (30) days of receipt of an invoice from the City.

 

9.                  Animals will not be permitted on the parking facilities unless approved in writing by the Director, other than guide dogs providing assistance to the visually impaired or disabled.

 

 

 

C.        APPEAL

 

1.         The Director shall notify an Applicant, in writing, of the Director's decision to deny an application.  The notice of decision shall state the grounds for denial of the application.  The notice of decision shall become final unless a written request for hearing is received by the Director within ten (10) days after the date of the notice of decision.

 

2.         Upon receipt of a timely written request for a hearing on a notice of decision to deny an Application, the Director shall schedule a hearing.  The Director shall promptly notify the Applicant of the hearing date, time and location.

 

3.         The hearing with the Director, or his or her designee, shall be held no later than thirty (30) days after receipt of the request for hearing.  The Director shall be under no obligation to schedule a hearing less than thirty (30) days after receipt of a request for hearing, even if the Application was not filed in the suggested time frame - sixty (60) days in advance of the proposed event.

 

4.         The hearing will be conducted informally and the technical rules of evidence shall not apply.  The Applicant may be represented by any person.

 

5.         After closing the hearing, the Director shall give a decision sustaining, reversing or modifying the decision to deny the Application.  A written notice of final decision shall be hand delivered or sent by mail to the Applicant.

 

 

EXHIBIT A

 

Parking Facilities List

 

The Almaden / Woz Way Surface Lot, consisting of the municipal off-street parking facility situated in the block bounded by Almaden Boulevard, San Carlos Street, Woz Way and the Guadalupe River.

 

The Market Street/ San Pedro Square Garage, consisting of the municipal off-street parking facility situated in the block bounded by Santa Clara, Market, St. John and San Pedro Streets.

 

The San Fernando / Third Street Surface Lot (Block 3), consisting of the off-street parking facility owned by the Redevelopment Agency of the City of San José and located on the south side of San Fernando Street between Second and Third Streets.

 

The San Pedro / Bassett Surface Lot, consisting of the off-street parking facility owned by the Redevelopment Agency of the City of San José and situated in the block bounded by Julian, San Pedro, Bassett and Little Market Streets.

 

The Santa Clara / Second Surface Lot, consisting of the municipal off-street parking facility situated in the block bounded by Santa Clara, Second, Third and San Fernando Streets.

 

The Second / San Carlos Street Garage, consisting of the municipal off-street parking facility located north of San Carlos Street between Second and Third Streets.

 

The Second / St. James Surface Lot (Oasis Lot), consisting of the off-street parking facility owned by the Redevelopment Agency of the City of San José and located on the block bounded by North First, North Second, St. James and Devine Streets.

 

The Third Street Garage, consisting of the municipal off-street parking facility situated in the block bounded by St. John, Second, Santa Clara and Third Streets.


Facilities Not Included in Guidelines

 

 

 

 

Auzerais Surface Lot                            lease provisions do not permit uses other than parking

 

Block 2 Surface lot                               removed for development in Fall 2001

 

Convention Center Garage                    parking demands on facility by events, hotels and library preclude alternate use

 

Market/Balbach Surface Lot                 alternate uses will be limited to:

1.      events with a Facility Use Agreement for the Convention Center

2.      Holiday Ice Rink

 

Japantown Surface Lot             lease provisions do not permit uses other than parking

 

Woz Way Surface Lot                          lease provisions do not permit uses other than parking