Commission recommends parking changes, rejects broad C-2 building envelope expansion

At a public hearing the commission considered Ordinance 2026-08, a set of proposed amendments to Title 17 (including Chapter 17.21 and 17.09) on parking and landscaping. Associate Planner Johanna Blanco said the changes were prompted by an applicant request concerning 198 East Center Street and would, if adopted, increase building envelopes for commercial buildings in some sections and apply parking spot carryover during use changes across zones. The hearing opened at 7:00 p.m. and closed at 8:05 p.m.

Applicant Courtney Kizer said the amendments were intended to help small business owners grow and address parking shortfalls. Commissioners raised policy trade-offs: Chair Kya Marienfeld and others warned that increasing building footprints and reducing street landscaping across the entire C-2 zone required broader public outreach and a larger code overhaul, while some members supported applying parking carryover citywide and allowing a parking fee-in-lieu in the C-2 zone for Center Street median parking. Marienfeld moved to forward a split recommendation—positive on parking carryover and fee-in-lieu (Center Street median parking) and negative on increasing building envelopes and reducing landscaping in the C-2 zone—which passed unanimously.

The motion sends a focused set of parking-related changes to City Council for consideration while flagging the building-envelope and landscaping changes for more extensive review and public notice.