Today, there are more than three parking spaces for every car in the United States. No one likes searching for a space, but in many areas, there is an oversupply, wasting valuable land, damaging the environment, and deterring development. Richard W. Willson argues that the problem stems from outdated minimum parking requirements. In this practical guide, he shows practitioners how to reform parking requirements in a way that supports planning goals and creates vibrant cities.
Local planners and policymakers, traffic engineers, developers, and community members are actively seeking this information as they institute principles of Smart Growth. But making effective changes requires more than relying on national averages or copying information from neighboring communities. Instead, Willson shows how professionals can confidently create requirements based on local parking data, an understanding of future trends affecting parking use, and clear policy choices.
After putting parking and parking requirements in context, the book offers an accessible tool kit to get started and repair outdated requirements. It looks in depth at parking requirements for multifamily developments, including income-restricted housing, workplaces, and mixed-use, transit-oriented development. Case studies for each type of parking illustrate what works, what doesn't, and how to overcome challenges. Willson also explores the process of codifying regulations and how to work with stakeholders to avoid political conflicts.
With Parking Reform Made Easy, practitioners will learn, step-by-step, how to improve requirements. The result will be higher density, healthier, more energy-efficient, and livable communities. This book will be exceptionally useful for local and regional land use and transportation planners, transportation engineers, real estate developers, citizen activists, and students of transportation planning and urban policy.
About Island Press
Title Page
Copyright Page
Contents
List of Figures
List of Tables
Foreword
Acknowledgments
1. Introduction: Reframing Parking Requirements as a Policy Choice
Parking Requirements as Policy
How Did We Get Here?
Origins and Current Practice
How Do Parking Requirements Work?
Reform or Eliminate Parking Requirements?
Map of the Book
Summary
2. Justifications for and Case against Parking Requirements
Justifications for Minimum Parking Requirements
Case against Minimum Parking Requirements
Interaction among Impacts: Cobenefits and Reinforcing Harms
Justifications for and Case against Parking Maximums
Summary
3. Smart and Not So Smart: Current Practice
Relationship to Plans
Varying Policy Approaches
Comparison of Parking Requirements
Summary
4. Past Performance Is No Guarantee of Future Results
Current Practice
A Review of Long-term Influences
Summary
5. The Parking Requirement Repair Toolkit
Getting Started
Toolkit Elements
Summary
6. Parking Requirements for Multifamily Housing
Multifamily Parking Requirements
Factors That Influence Multifamily Parking Requirements
Case Study Analysis
Parking Requirements for Income-restricted Affordable Housing
Parking Management for Multifamily Housing
Summary
7. Parking Requirements for Workplaces
Office Parking Requirements
Factors That Influence Office Parking Requirements
Case Study Analysis
Parking Management for Office Districts
Summary
8. Parking Requirements for Mixed-use, Transit-oriented Developments
Shared Parking and Transit-oriented Parking Concepts
Mixed-use, Transit-oriented Parking Requirements
Factors That Influence Mixed-use, Transit-oriented Parking Utilization
Case Study: Mixed-use Complex
Case Study: Mixed-use District
Parking Management for Mixed-use, Transit-oriented Districts
Summary
9. Codifying Parking Requirement Reform
Scope of Effort
Zoning Typology
Principles of Effective Zoning
Implications of Zoning Reforms for Parking Requirements
Inventory of Parking Requirement Reform Measures
Parking Regulation in Form-based Codes
Parking Requirements for Infill and Redevelopment
Summary
10. Community Engagement and Politics
Working with Stakeholders
Parking Reform Processes
Summary
11. Paved Paradise Revisited
A Call for Action
Framing the Options
The Toolkit
In Praise of Incrementalism
References
Index
"I give kudos to Professor Willson for producing a path-breaking book that advances the prospects for better parking policy and regulation."
