Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Parking topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Draft code widens options to reduce parking minimums and encourage shared or deferred parking
Summary
The proposed site standards include measures to shrink or defer required off‑street parking, allow driveway parking for small multiunit buildings, broaden shared‑parking and parking‑study reductions, and halve minimums in mixed‑use downtown districts; commissioners raised concerns about on‑street parking and downtown parking capacity.
The Planning Commission reviewed substantial changes to how the zoning rewrite would treat off‑street parking.
What was proposed: consultant Andy Amont and staff outlined multiple strategies to allow lower minimum off‑street parking requirements while preserving options for higher supply when market demand justifies it.
Key features presented - Missing‑middle parking flexibility: single‑family through fourplexes may provide required parking on driveways or parking strips that do not exceed 22 feet in width, rather than requiring engineered lots. - Mixed‑use reductions and conversions: the draft would halve the base minimum parking requirement automatically in mixed‑use downtown districts to encourage upper‑story residential conversions. - Administrative reductions and studies: reductions could be granted after a parking study (ITE manual) or shared‑parking analysis (Urban Land Institute) or when public or private off‑site parking is proximate. - Deferred (land‑banked) parking: property owners could record a deed restriction to build additional parking later if demand rises. - Parking‑lot landscaping threshold reduced: landscaping requirements would apply to parking areas of 20 spaces or more (down from 40 in earlier drafts).
Commissioner concerns and public comment Commissioners raised practical concerns: if on‑street parking remains restricted for reasons such as winter plowing, driveway and reduced‑minimum strategies may not work for existing neighborhoods. Commissioners asked staff to coordinate recommendations for on‑street parking policy with the city council and public works department.
Downtown capacity: several speakers, including Councilmember Carly Rose Hammond, argued that most downtown parking lots are underused on typical days and that lower minimums can support conversions. Staff replied that developers can still provide larger parking supplies if market demand and tenant needs require it; the draft sets minima and also a maximum (20% above minimum) but allows the planning commission to permit higher counts in specific cases.
Other parking topics: the draft adds bicycle parking requirements citywide, design standards for drive‑through stacking, and guidance for EV charging infrastructure (standards included but no citywide mandatory EV parking count at present).
Ending: staff will return with draft cross-references and district-level counts for Article 3 and will discuss parking policy coordination with council and DPW.
