Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Parking Loading topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Atlantic Beach adopts parking, loading amendments to encourage Main Street-style development
Summary
Council unanimously adopted Ordinance No. 5-2024, amending the Land Management Ordinance to remove minimum off-street parking requirements in Main Street One and Two districts, standardize parking stall sizes to 9-by-19 feet and clarify ADA parking standards to encourage a Main Street character.
Atlantic Beach Town Council unanimously approved Ordinance No. 5-2024 on Aug. 29, 2024, amending off-street parking and loading standards in the town—s Land Management Ordinance.
Planning Assistant Leah Kane said the amendment eliminates minimum off-street parking and loading requirements within the Main Street One and Main Street Two zoning districts to "help encourage that more downtown feel" where on-street parking and a more pedestrian-oriented corridor are expected to serve local businesses. Kane said the ordinance also standardizes parking-space dimensions to a 9-foot width by 19-foot depth and clarifies handicapped-accessible parking requirements and related design standards.
Kane described the changes as modest technical updates that align the town with industry standards and neighboring jurisdictions: "It's really just a minor change from an 18-foot depth to a 19-foot depth, and actually to narrow your parking space requirements from ten feet wide down to nine feet wide," she said. She added that loading standards remain largely unchanged and that required ADA spaces are now clearer in the ordinance text.
Council took the required public hearing and then a roll-call vote. The ordinance passed on second reading with unanimous support (Isom, Gore, David and Mayor Evans voting in favor). The change removes minimum off-street requirements for the two Main Street districts but does not eliminate dimensional or design standards that developments must meet where on-street parking is relied upon.
What happens next: The Planning Department will apply the revised standard in development reviews for properties in the Main Street zones. The ordinance does not alter parking rules elsewhere in town and does not waive ADA or loading criteria where those standards apply.
