One of the CodeNEXT recommendations that FAN’s membership voted to support was the elimination of minimum parking requirements citywide:
Vote Language:
Eliminate off-street parking requirements from all zones. Allow owners to choose the appropriate amount of parking for their circumstances.
Rationale
- The Obama White House Housing Development Toolkit recommends that localities eliminate – not just reduce – minimum off-street parking requirements.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/whitehouse.gov/files/images/Housing_Development_Toolkit%20f.2.pdf- Parking can reduce the amount and diversity of housing that people may build within the constraints of their land, thereby making our neighborhoods less inclusive.
- Surface parking lots make commercial destinations less accessible to neighbors who walk, bike, and take transit.
- People are more important than cars. Consequently, no one should be required to provide free housing for automobiles. If we don’t require people to house the homeless, why should we require them to house cars?
- Parking requirements also cause traffic and increase VMT (Vehicle Miles Traveled).
If Americans Paid for the Parking We Consume, We'd Drive 500 Billion Fewer Miles Each Year — Streetsblog USA- Parking requirements add unnecessary impervious cover that increases run-off and risk of flooding.
In May 16 special meeting, Planning Commission voted to direct CodeNEXT staff to work towards zero minimum parking requirements, while paying special attention to ADA compliance, emergency vehicle access, availability of residential parking, and pedestrian safety. Watch and listen:
The conversation leading up to the Planning Commission vote was surprising (pleasantly so, for those of us who oppose minimum parking requirements), because the conventional wisdom has been that the goal of eliminating parking requirements is political fantasy.
It was gratifying to hear Commissioners @fastmole and Greg Anderson cite the arguments from FAN’s resolution.