Agenda - Planning Commission - 02/06/2003

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I i I I I I I I I I I i I I I ! I II JANUARY' 2003 AMEI~ICAN PLANNING ASSQCIATIQN Parking Standards in the Zoning Code ' By fason Wittenberg :'~stre~ ?arking standards have long been among the most challenging aspects of the drafting of zoning ordinances. '~The im~;icts of the choices made can influence the character of the community for many years, even decades, after the ~ov~ons take effect. To clarify the issues and besrpractices in this area, APA is cUrrendy re/easing a new Planning Advisory Service Re?orr, Parking Standards (No..510/51 I). T, Ois issue of ZOning News consists ors°me selected excerpts j%m that report, which can be acquired through Planners Book Service ar wzomplanning, or~/bookservice' The Basis for Zoning Code Parking Requirements provisions of chis chapter have been established to ensure that adequate off-street parking is provided to meet the parking needs of uses located within the city." Some codes, such a~ Pirraburgh's, make a point of mentioning fl~ecibility in the purpose statement of its off-street parking chapter, as follows: Purpose. The purpose of these regulations is to: · allow flexibility in addressing vehicle parking, loading, and access issues; · present a menu of strategies co solve parking issues rather than parking space requirements; · maintain and enhance a safe and efficient transportation system that is consistent with environmental goals and clean air; and ' ensure that off-street parking, loading, and access demands associated with new development will be met without adversely . affecting other nearby land uses and surrounding neighborhoods. (Axdde 6, Section 9.14.0 l, amended August 24, 2000) Determining the appropriate amount of off-street parking' that should be required by a municipal zoning ordinance, like many aspects of planning, is part art and parr science~and is done within a political context. When municipal officials, write or rewrite their off-street parking provisions, the list of sources consulted is often short and has' remained largely the same for. years. Many rely on fhe institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) fbr information related to parking demand generated by various [and uses. Some zoning codes state that, when an individual [and use is aot covered in the city's off.-srreet parking chapter, ITE standards apply. Despite the fact that ITE's information may be the most extensive quantitative data readily available for purchase, ITE cautions chat much of the information is based on studies conducted in locations where few transportation alternatives exSst and/or are based on studies wi'O. a very small sample size. [Editor's note: The Parking Council of ITE had a new version of the cdp generation manual in press at the time this PAS Report was in final pro.duction. Readers should consult the new manual, which, we are told, is quite different in ira approach.] Donald Shoup, chair of the Urban Planning Department at the University of California-Los Angeles, has noted that parking demand studies are generally conducted in an environment where off-street parking is provided without a ·; . about this article. Join us online! During February 10-21, go online to participate in our "Ask the Author'.' forum., an interactive featuge of Zoning News. Jason-Wittenberg will' be available to answer questions about this article. Go' to the APA website at www. planning.org and follow'the links, to the '~k the Author" section. From there, just;submit your questions about the article using an e-mail link. The author will reply; posting the answers cumulatively on the website for the benefit of all subscribers. This feature will be available' for selected issues of Zoning News at announced times. After each online discussion is closedl the answers will be saved in an online archive available through the A.PA Zoning News webpages.