Mayor Kevin L. Faulconer recently released a proposal that would eliminate parking space requirements for multifamily housing developments near transit hubs as the latest piece of his “Housing SD” initiative. Parking requirements typically drive up construction costs as each space can add $35,000 to $90,000 per unit to a project\u2019s budget. Eliminating those requirements in Transit Priority Areas (TPA) \u2013 within a half mile of a major transit stop \u2013 significantly reduces costs and allows builders to construct more units.
\nUnder the new parking plan, multifamily projects can be built with as little as zero parking spaces in TPAs through the city \u2013 a move that aligns with the City\u2019s landmark Climate Action Plan\u2019s goal of slashing greenhouse gas emissions by further reducing vehicle trips. Builders can still include parking as part of their projects but can scale back the number of spaces or eliminate them altogether based on market demand.
\nCurrently, the City requires builders to provide a minimum number of parking spaces for each dwelling unit built, regardless of the location of the multifamily residential development. This requirement can range from providing a single parking space for a studio apartment to two spaces for a unit with three or more bedrooms.
\nHousing developments in transit priority areas will also be required to offer a variety of transportation amenities available to residents, including:
\nSecure bicycle storage or repair stations to maintain bikes for everyday use;
\nOnsite bike, car, or small electric vehicle share programs for when a vehicle is needed;
\nStorage or locker facilities to ensure delivery items can be safely stored until they can be retrieved;
\nTransit passes to attract residents who want to live more sustainably and with more mobility options;
\nHealthy food retail and day care facilities, for those residential projects seeking to incorporate onsite lifestyle conveniences.
\n“It is important that the City continues to develop creative ways to make housing at all levels in San Diego more affordable,” said City Councilmember Scott Sherman. “The mayor\u2019s proposed parking requirement reforms are a game changer. They will make construction less expensive, provide opportunities for more units to be built and, ultimately and most important, will reduce the cost for the people living in them.”
\nThe cost and space savings could be substantial for renters and new homeowners. With the rapid rise of ride share and micro-mobility options such as dockless scooters and bicycles, the City is anticipating residents will increasingly rely less on automobiles to get around. This proposal will allow individuals to make a choice that can reduce costs.
\n“Circulate San Diego is pleased to see the Faulconer administration taking leadership on citywide parking reform,” said Colin Parent, executive director and general counsel for Circulate San Diego. “Updating parking rules will allow more people to live and work near transit, which is key to our climate and affordability goals.”
\nThe mayor\u2019s proposal could result in a cost savings of at least $35,000 per parking space that would no longer be required under this market-based reduced parking requirement.\u00a0In addition, builders can include more units in a project by utilizing the space saved by not having to build an underground parking garage or similar parking accommodations. This will help to increase the overall housing supply in the region and achieve the City\u2019s goal of housing for all.\u00a0
\nOther cities that have implemented programs to eliminate parking requirements in transit areas, including Seattle, have seen success at increasing the housing supply and a reduction in vehicle ownership. As a result, Seattle has expanded its program to other areas in the city.
\nThe mayor expects to bring the TPA parking plan to the Smart Growth and Land Use committee in early 2019.
\n“We need to create more housing affordability for San Diego\u2019s working families and this will be a big step in that direction,” Faulconer said. “We know that more and more people are choosing to live without a car and are demanding quality housing near transit. This plan gives builders the freedom to be smart and creative with their projects, while contributing to our housing supply and our climate action goals by getting more cars off the road.”<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Mayor Kevin L. Faulconer recently released a proposal that would eliminate parking space requirements for multifamily housing developments near transit hubs as the latest piece of his “Housing SD” initiative. Parking requirements typically drive up construction costs as each space can add $35,000 to $90,000 per unit to a project\u2019s budget. Eliminating those requirements in […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":726,"featured_media":268946,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11560","_seopress_titles_title":"Mayor proposes ending parking requirements for housing developments","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[12360,11560,11551],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-268975","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-duplicate","category-la-jolla-village-news","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268975","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/726"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=268975"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268975\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/268946"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=268975"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=268975"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=268975"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}