City Hall has been considering using its parking operations as a way to raise $150 million for school construction, street paving, sidewalk development and other unaddressed capital needs.

Norman D. Butts, the city’s top financial officer, confirmed that there have been discussions about awarding a long-term conces- sion to an undisclosed private group willing to pay big bucks for a 30- to 40-year concession to operate the city’s 20 parking lots and garages.

There had been some buzz that Mayor Dwight C. Jones might highlight the proposal during his State of the City speech, but that did not happen.

That may be because, as Mr. Butts put it, “the talks have stalled” in recent months, leaving the proposal in limbo.

The city has not received all of its requested information, said Mr. Butts, whose official title is deputy chief administrative officer for finance and administration.

The opportunity to consider this kind of plan developed because the city is a big player in parking. The city now owns and operates 5,463 parking spaces in its 20 lots and garages, along with more than 1,400 metered spaces on the street, according to information on its website.

The idea of cashing in on a revenue generating asset like parking is not new, said Mr. Butts, who joined Mayor Jones’ administration in June after serving as director of finance for the Town of Leesburg in Northern Virginia.

Numerous localities have sold or leased toll roads, water plants and other assets to raise funds, pay down debt and fund projects without raising taxes.

The economic collapse in 2008 tamped down interest in such projects, but the improving economic outlook appears to be reawakening interest, according to the National League of Cities.

Richmond was more interested in this idea when Byron C. Marshall served as the city’s chief administrative officer.

Sources said he was pushing the proposal before he lost the confidence of Mayor Jones and departed in mid-September.

Mr. Butts is among those who are not enthusiastic. He said this is the kind of proposal that cities not as financially strong as Richmond pursue.

He cited Chicago and Detroit as examples of governments that have sold or leased public assets. In 2005, for example, Chicago gained $1.8 billion by selling its Skyline toll road to an Australian firm.

“We’re a city with a double A credit rating,” Mr. Butts said. “I’m not sure this is something we need to consider.”

Richmond, though, has plenty of unmet construction needs and is nearing its self-imposed borrowing limit.

Along with fresh dollars, supporters liked the proposal Mr. Marshall was pursuing because it would have required the private operator to relieve the city of the cost of maintaining the lots and garages and to make contributions to support city efforts to promote business growth in depressed neighborhoods.

“Parking is not a core mission for the city,” said one insider at City Hall, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “This seems like a creative way to raise money for projects we cannot afford while getting rid of a responsibility we don’t need.”