One hundred twenty-three new units of housing could come to Shaw’s historic Blagden Alley. Many residents think that’s a great idea, but some aren’t happy that the project would contain no parking spaces. That idea deserves support, not opposition.

Rendering of the proposed development.

The misconception that everybody drives and needs a place to park has long shaped cities’ zoning codes. But developers are starting to look beyond that assumption and consider buildings that cater to people who want to travel in other ways.

The two small buildings, by developer SB-Urban, would run along Blagden Alley between M and N Streets NW in Shaw, adjacent to the Convention Center and Mount Vernon Square Metro station and close to downtown. Blagden Alley is a unique historic alley for DC, featuring both residences and small businesses including La Colombe Coffee. This alley, and its northern neighbor Naylor Court, are small alley networks that allow for vehicles and pedestrians to share space in a way that is common in European cities.

The new buildings will have no parking

SB-Urban would build two apartment buildings with 123 small, short-term, fully-furnished rental studios averaging 380 square feet. It replaces two vacant lots used for surface parking and restores a historic garage on the interior of the alley. And it would contain no off-street parking. It’s similar to projects in Dupont Circle and Georgetown which have already gotten through the approval process.

Units without parking won’t be for everyone, but would appeal to the many people who don’t need cars to work, shop, or socialize. It’s near downtown and near ample transit.

SB-Urban has described the complex as a good fit for an individual who arrives by taxi or Metro with little more than a suitcase. This person prefers to live in a vibrant urban neighborhood and navigate the city by foot, bike, bus and train. An ideal tenant, for example, might be a consultant in town to work for nine months.

Any new housing development in Shaw is likely to succeed. But to make sure the residents can live without parking spaces, SB-Urban will invest $70,000 in a new 27-dock Capital Bikeshare station (and 14 new bikes) and each resident will get a membership. The building will provide car share memberships, real-time transit screens, and a bike maintenance room. There will also be someone on site to advise residents on how to get around without a car.

Rendering of the proposed development.

No parking draws opposition

Despite support from Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2F, DC’s Board of Zoning Adjustment has yet to approve SB-Urban’s proposal. Board members worried that despite all efforts to ensure apartment residents will be comfortable without a car, the project will still lead to more cars on the street and a raised demand for parking in a neighborhood where drivers already complain of tight parking.

At a December 2, 2014 hearing, several nearby residents objected to the project’s lack of parking. Board of Zoning Adjustment Chairman Lloyd Jordan repeatedly expressed skepticism that building zero of the 62 spaces otherwise required by zoning would not have a negative impact on the neighborhood, despite repeated affirmation by both DC Office of Planning and DC Department of Transportation officials.

“What do we do two years from now when the buildings are up and running and we have a problem?” Jordan asked. He did not specify what he meant by a parking problem. And his and other residents’ concerns are misplaced.

This project is smart because there’s demand for it

Parking is often far more expensive than most people realize. Fewer people all over the region and country are owning cars. More than a third of households in DC are car-free, and that number is 41% among renters in the Census tract containing the project.

This neighborhood has an astonishingly high walk to work rate: 37%, versus DC’s overall 11%, which is already the second highest in the country. This makes sense because of the proximity to downtown.

The Blagden Alley project is not appealing to just a small niche, but rather to a large and growing share of DC’s households: young professionals who are much less likely to own a car and more likely to want to walk and bike to daily activities.

The rapid growth of DC, with more than 42,000 people arriving between 2010 and 2013, is led by young adults who are willing to trade larger living spaces and car ownership for living in more walkable, mixed use neighborhoods.

Without the ability to get an RPP sticker, if any residents later decide they do want cars, they will have to rent an existing off-street parking space nearby. Even so, opponents of the development argue that new residents would find a way to get a sticker or at least a temporary permit from the police. SB-Urban representatives stated that the leases in the building would prohibit this.

Blagden Alley apartments will add affordable housing and pedestrians

Shaw is a neighborhood that’s in high demand in a rapidly growing city. In addition to adding much-needed housing, the Blagden Alley project is setting aside 11 units for moderate and low-income residents as part of the city’s Inclusionary Zoning affordable housing program.

By bringing in new residents who walk to stores, work, and transit, the project will also push its historic neighborhood toward being more pedestrian-oriented. More people walking on the streets help lower crime, support local businesses, and strengthen the case for better transit.

Construction of these buildings with alley addresses and no parking also reinforces the pedestrian orientation of the alleys, which do not have sidewalks. Forcing more cars into the alley would degrade the character of this shared-use space.

SB-Urban also makes the case that this kind of housing minimizes vehicle trips, lessens traffic, and shrinks the carbon footprint of residents. “Buildings with parking attract people with cars; buildings without parking attract people without cars,” said project manager Brook Katzen in a statement about the project.

Today, the BZA will continue to discuss the case. These Blagden Alley apartments represent an excellent chance to welcome new residents to the city with minimal carbon footprints.

Cheryl Cort is Policy Director for the Coalition for Smarter Growth. She works with community activists, non-profit groups and decision-makers to promote more walkable, bikeable, inclusive, transit-oriented communities as the most sustainable and equitable way for the DC region to grow and provide opportunities for all.