Issue - meetings

To consider report 84/10 of the head of commercial services. 

The Executive considered report 84/10 of the head of commercial services.  This reviewed the council’s fees and charges for its car parks for 2011/12.  The Executive portfolio holder asked the Executive to ignore paragraph 23 of the report, as it did not relate to this council. 

The portfolio holder highlighted the options set out in the report:

• To make no changes to the daily fees or excess charge levels

• To increase the cost of residents’ annual and monthly permits in line with VAT at 1 April 2011

• To increase the cost of business permits from £12 to £25 plus VAT per space per day and increase the cost of locating wheeled bins in the car park from £200 to £204 per bin per year plus VAT

• To increase the cost of permits allowing vehicles associated with Abingdon Fair to park for the duration

• To provide special permits for school pick-up and drop-off in all car parks

The Executive noted that it was not necessary to increase the daily fees or excess charge levels as there had been reductions in the service costs from sharing the service with South Oxfordshire.  Presently, the service was breaking even.  The portfolio holder did not recommend offering free parking or the first hour free as this would significantly reduced income.  She believed the car park users should pay for the service, not the Council Tax payers.  The council’s fees were favourable in comparison to many local authorities in Oxfordshire.  The officers would review car park charges in December 2011 when a more accurate long-term picture of income and expenditure would be available. 

The report had showed the costs of running the service, and included an amount for depreciating the car parks as an asset.  This was not a statutory requirement but was the council’s choice to show a fair representation of the costs.  It was good accounting practice to write off depreciation costs over time. 

The Executive supported the recommendations in the report, including the options listed above. 

RESOLVED

To agree the options set out in paragraphs 10 to 17 of report 84/10 to form the basis of the car parking fees and charges recommendations to the Council as part of the 2011/12 budget proposals.