Watchdog Media Cooperative’s Post

We did an exercise in my Walkable Cities course where we counted up the various types of parking parcels in downtown Phoenix. In the couple block radius we looked at, ~25% of the land was made up of parking! That's a LOT of wasted potential! There were lots (lol) of surface parking lots but also several parking garages, though there were some where parking was subsurface or encompassed by storefronts. I decided to take a look at a significantly smaller Elmira and noticed the same if not more of downtown Elmira was covered with surface parking lots! Even worse, after moving back to the area and getting to walk around again, so many are either completely empty most of the time or have a handful of cars in the entire lot at any given moment. And two underutilized parking structures, which probably haven't ever seen full capacity. These underutilized, heat-generating surfaces tear up our urban fabric and contribute to urban heat islands. The least we should be doing is breaking up these surfaces with green (trees, bioswales, rain gardens) and making them safe for pedestrians, and encouraging the use of our parking garages. The City built Gerard Way with essentially no nearby parking and on-street parking is hardly utilized off of the one block of Water + Main in downtown. Yet some businesses with 10 employees have full parking lots to themselves and no trespassing/private property signs. We should be sewing up the fabric by developing on these underutilized parcels to create a more walkable, compatible, and enjoyable downtown. With work planned for the garage, we should be working with downtown businesses and apartments to ensure the garage is being used all throughout the day, rather than tenants taking up on-street parking meant for businesses. And get rid of parking minimums while we're at it!

The good thing about the excessive number of parking lots in North American cities is that they have incredible repurposing potential. Parking lots are usually located in prime city-center locations. They could be converted into productive public and private spaces where people can spend time, engage in activities and meet each other. This kind of redevelopment can massively improve the productivity of an area, increasing the city’s tax base and revenue. In turn, the city can invest some of that new revenue into improving public transportation, thus alleviating any inconvenience removing the lots caused.

Should cities mark on-street parking spaces or leave them unmarked? Individual cities and towns have the freedom to decide. 🤔 There are many reasons to mark parking spots and also many reasons not to. 🚗 Here are some of the reasons cities choose NOT to mark spaces: 🛠️ Maintenance. Where spots are marked, lines must be kept in good condition through regular restriping, which carries significant time and cost. 📏 Sizing. If parking spaces are marked, the length of those spaces needs to be determined, and that decision gets complicated quickly. The larger you make each space, the fewer cars you can fit along the block. 🔍 Lack of clear need. If you’re going to mark parking spaces, you should be able to articulate why. If on-street parking is not paid, and you’re not concerned with collecting data, the decision to leave it unmarked could simply be because you don’t need marking—a common rationale in residential areas.

Parking is often the centre of debate in our cities, particularly on-street car parks, who gets to use them and how we manage them. Recent controversy has focused on new infill housing developments, which often provide fewer off-street car parks or none at all, which can lead to increased pressure on the street. So, how can we manage it better, to ensure parking for those who need it, while for local benefit? Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gutXsD5F

As Spokane eliminates parking minimums for new developments, we’re entering a transformative period in urban development. This change opens up opportunities for developers to focus on denser, more sustainable projects without the constraints of parking requirements. For those of us in commercial real estate, this could mean more flexibility in project designs and potentially more affordable housing options. How do you see this shift impacting the market and our communities? https://lnkd.in/gVsuRWtx

Suburban car parking charges have been given a punt 🚗💰 The papers for next week's long-term plan (LTP) meeting at council are now public. Officers have recommended that parking charges are not included in the 2024/25 year but they want a report back on how they could be implemented for the 2025/26 Annual Plan. Residents said a resounding no to the parking proposal with 77% of the 3,722 submissions recieved in opposition. In light of this it's disappointing not to see the proposal removed entirely from the LTP. The pushback wouldn't have happened without the overwhelming voice that residents in Tawa, Johnsonville and Newlands sent to council through consultation, so thank you. There are still major decisions to come next week around holding airport shares, waste collection and water investment. It's great having parking charges out of the way (at least for now) so we can focus on the big picture items that will really impact Wellingtonians over the next decade. The final LTP proposal and consultation report 👇 https://lnkd.in/gqYptCUc

Outdated parking mandates have become barriers to progress in many cities, including Haltom City. These regulations, which require a minimum number of parking spaces based on property type, often hinder redevelopment and limit housing options. 'The constraint is completely artificial. It's just based on some number that someone put in a book 40 or 50 years ago,' said Tony Jordan of the Parking Reform Network. While cities like Austin, Taylor, Bandera, and Bastrop have taken steps to reduce or eliminate parking minimums, Haltom City remains an ideal candidate for such reform. The Haltom United Business Alliance (#huba) has advocated for creating an overlay district where parking minimums are eliminated, enabling business-friendly policies. Ron Sturgeon, founder of HUBA and the 'Make Haltom City Thrive Again' initiative, experienced firsthand how parking mandates can stifle redevelopment. His plans to convert a derelict skating rink into a new salon and spa were halted due to insufficient parking, despite an agreement to share an underutilized church lot. The American Planning Association has recognized the benefits of parking reform, stating it 'helps boost small businesses, promote housing development, and put people over parking.' As Haltom City seeks revitalization, especially in its southern and central areas, embracing parking reform could be a crucial step towards attracting new businesses and fostering economic growth. #parkingreform #smallbusiness #revitalization #haltomcity Parking Reform Network

This Planetizen article describes the city of Vancouver's new policies to eliminate parking mandates and allow more compact development around transit stations. Well done, Vancouver! "Vancouver Eliminates Parking Mandates, Supports TOD" In a significant step for more diverse housing and transit-friendly development, the Vancouver City Council eliminated parking minimums and adopted a Transit-Oriented Areas (TOA) policy. (https://lnkd.in/gaJ3SXU5)

Dallas Parking Reform. City Plan Commission will hear public speakers on Thursday Dec. 5th. This is item 25. It’ll be a long day. Written comments are always an option if you cannot attend virtually or in person. Send your comments to the CPC members using this link: https://lnkd.in/gtBXbMVt *Tell them you support parking reform and thank them for their service to the city.*    If you missed the 11/21 staff briefing on parking reform, it’s available on YouTube. It’s about 90 minutes.  https://lnkd.in/gWwZ_7gV The agenda, case report, and draft ordinance can be found using this link: https://lnkd.in/gCFbybpa The draft ordinance has substantive changes beginning on page 26 for multifamily loading, then starting again on page 39, so don’t get discouraged that it’s over 70 pages.    What there is to SUPPORT: no parking minimums, simplified loading regs, parking special exceptions will no longer have a percentage limit before it becomes a variance application, no garage door setback from an alley (but still applies to streets). Watch out for: pedestrian pathway requirements within parking lots, residential driveway width limits (especially concerning for duplex and corner lots and when coupled with the upcoming impervious surface code amendment), Traffic Demand Management Plan (TDMP) requirements are still in the works. These items need some debate and fine tuning.

Downtown Foot Traffic ++ [improving communities] To make the downtown area more welcoming for foot traffic, we need to make some changes both now and in the future. A big part of this is slowing down cars to 25 mph or less. Other cities have successfully upgraded their streets by planning these changes together with their scheduled road repaving. We should focus on repaving the roads while also making improvements like widening sidewalks, adding bike lanes with parking protection, and providing better lighting and seating for foot traffic.