Posts about Parking Maximums

Projects like the Aldi in Carver-Langston or the Van Ness Walgreens (later changed) will keep getting proposed while the zoning rewrite is underway. Developers will design a project the way zoning requires, but in the absence of guidance, they'll just fall back on the standard suburban models. These projects will last for 50 years, so the least we can ask is that the developer put the parking behind the buildings.

To submit comments, fax or emailed a signed PDF of not more than 10 pages to zcsubmissions@dc.gov by 3 pm today.

The Green Area Ratio (PDF), the subject of tonight's hearing, incorporates a standard of environmental sustainability into development. New development or large-scale renovations for buildings will have to meet a GAR standard, except for single-family homes, 2-unit condos/apartments, or accessory dwellings .

The proposed text sets scores for different kinds of landscaping and stormwater management. Trees count for a certain number of square feet depending on their size. Landscaped areas count for 30-60% of their size depending on the depth of their soil, permeable pavers about 40-50%, green roofs 60-80%. That score is then divided by the total size of the lot to generate a GAR.

The actual GAR each property will have to achieve has yet to be determined, and the Office of Planning will propose specific thresholds as they write zoning text for each individual type of zone.

Implementing the GAR will cost some money, though statistics from a similar program in Seattle showed that it added only ½% to 1% to the total cost of the project. In addition, buildings have to pay impervious surface fees from the District Department of the Environment and DC Water, and higher GAR will directly lower those payments. GAR features on buildings will also help DC reach its EPA-mandated stormwater quality goals, improve air quality, and reduce air conditioning costs.

OP estimated the current GAR of properties in DC. For commercial zones, the GAR today falls between .2 and .3, with industrial zones a little lower, moderate density residential between .3 and .4, and lower density residential zones higher due to their lower lot coverage.

The Zoning Commission asked OP to estimate what GAR requirements it might set for a zone. OPS ran the analysis for Production, Distribution and Repair (PDR) zones, which are designated C-M for Commercial and Manufacturing or just M for Manufacturing in the old zoning code. PDR zones average .137, the lowest category in DC.

Each 0.1 of GAR would add about $1.50 per square foot to projects. OP would recommend a starting GAR requirement of 0.2, with the opportunity to reevaluate raising the threshold in the future. This would add less than 1% to the construction costs of new projects.

The hearing is tonight, 6:30 pm at 441 4th Street, NW (One Judiciary Square), room 220-South. Typically in these hearings, OP presents first, then the Zoning Commission asks questions, and finally public witnesses can speak, first witnesses in support and then those opposed. Fill out two of the little witness cards that are on the table next to the far right door while you wait.

It also pushes federal agencies to define Transportation Management Plans, use Transportation Demand Management strategies, run shuttles and circulators around larger campuses, plan for bicycle accessibility, and more.

As NCPC updates this section, they will consider how to better comply with President Obama's executive order requiring the government to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. How will new bike sharing systems fit into federal plans? What about streetcars? Can anything be done to improve transportation in new BRAC federal facilities very far from transit?

The chat will lead in to a public forum tomorrow evening at NCPC headquarters.

Also, don't forget to testify at tonight's parking zoning hearing, support the H Street/Benning Road streetcar on Wednesday afternoon, and hear about the future of Fairfax while supporting the Coalition for Smarter Growth at their forum and fundraiser Wednesday night.

The streetcar has widespread public support, and despite being a midday meeting, the tenor of the hearing will send a strong signal to Chairman and Mayor-Elect Vince Gray as he makes tough budget decisions. You don't need to say anything profound or fact-laden; just say why you want the streetcar built. To get on the list, contact April Hawkins-Mason by at ahawkinsmason@dccouncil.us or 202-724-8195 no later than Monday at 5.

The other place we need a strong turnout is for the parking zoning hearing. The Office of Planning and DDOT have worked hard to find reasonable parking regulations that still respect businesses' and residents' desires, but also to remove the dangerous incentives in zoning to build too much parking and lock newly developed areas into excessive car-dependence.

You can say whatever you want, but I'm going to say I encourage the Zoning Commission to support the recommendation and choose DDOT's revised proposal for maximums, which lies between their original suggestion and OP's. That hearing is 6:30 pm Monday at 441 4th Street, NW (One Judiciary Square), 2nd floor. To sign up to testify, call 202-727-6311.

Tomorrow are two meetings on transportation east of the river. At 10 am is a meeting for the Far Northeast Livability Study, one of DDOT's projects around the city to examine streets in a multimodal way and improve performance and safety for all modes. This one encompasses the part of Ward 7 north of East Capitol Street and takes place at Kelly Miller Middle School, 301 49th Street, NE.

Then at 1, DDOT will hold the second of its two Circulator meetings, where it will talk to residents about the Circulator expansion study. That will occur at the Benning Library, 3935 Benning Rd, NE.

In DC's northern section, the second community meeting on revitalizing upper 14th (north of Spring Road) is Wednesday, November 17, 6:30-8 pm at Kingsbury Day School, 5000 14th Street, NW in the Great Room.

If you live west of both rivers, don't feel left out. There are meetings on plans in Arlington and Falls Church involving parking, streetcars, and buses too.

Arlington is holding two open houses on the East Falls Church Area Plan. This plan was the result of years of staff and task force input, and was officially presented to the Arlington County Board back in July 2010.

The board asked staff to address some specific points and seek community input and then return for final approval. How much parking to build, and how much to design the area around walking (as Arlington wants) versus automobility (as VDOT wants), are some of the key questions.

The open houses are Monday, November 15, 7 pm at Tuckahoe Elementary School, 6550 North 26th Street in the Multi-Purpose Room, and Saturday, November 20, 1 pm at Resurrection Evangelical Lutheran Church, 6201 Washington Boulevard in the Parish Hall.

If you'd rather talk streetcars, there are also two public meetings on the Columbia Pike streetcar. One is also Monday, November 15, 7 pm at Goodwin House at Bailey's Crossroads, 3440 S. Jefferson Street, Falls Church in the auditorium. The other is Thursday, November 18, 7 pm at Walter Reed Community Center, 2909 16th Street S., Arlington in the Multipurpose Room.

Then there's buses. WMATA is studying improvements to the 23A/C (McLean-Crystal City) and 25A/C/D (Ballston-Bradlee-Pentagon) lines. The next public meeting is 6:30-8:30 pm at Shirlington Public Library, 4200 Campbell Avenue in Arlington.

Finally, NCPC is starting the process to update the federal part of the Comprehensive Plan, which influences federal land use choices and transportation options for federal workers. The first part to discuss is transportation, and NCPC is holding a public forum Tuesday, 5:30-7:30 pm at their offices, 401 9th Street, NW, Suite 500. We'll also be having a live chat with NCPC planners at noon on Tuesday, so stay tuned.

Parking minimums would disappear in most cases. In neighborhood commercial corridors or low-density residential areas without good transit, commercial, institutional, or multi-family residential buildings would still need to provide some parking. But any area with good transit service, or high-density areas, would have no requirements.

For bicycle parking, new buildings over a certain size would have to include some outdoor visitor bicycle parking (like bike racks), and for non-residential buildings, also a certain amount of indoor, secure bicycle parking along with shower facilities. Access to parking and showers is one of the most significant obstacles to people being able to choose to bike to work.

The parking location proposal would disallow parking between buildings and a street, such as in strip malls like the H Street Connection. This would have ensured that Walgreens designed the somewhat more pedestrian-oriented store they ultimately built at Van Ness instead of the very suburban style one they originally pushed for.

Surface parking lots would need to have 10% of the lot landscaped and trees that at maturity would cover 30% of the lot in tree canopy.

The requirements will also serve to limit on-street loading zones and require more off-street loading docks and berths, while ensuring minimal impacts on urban design, public space, and the pedestrian environment. This will be a boon for all users of the street, including automobile drivers, cyclists, and transit riders, as trucks parked on the street cause congestion, block bicycle lanes, and negatively impact the efficiency of bus routes.

Currently, there is no upper limit to the amount of parking that can be built in either surface lots or parking garages in the city. The Office of Planning and DDOT have both recommended setting a maximum for the amount of parking that could be included with a new building or development.

OP's original recommendation was more conservative, setting the following limits:

• 100,000 square feet of land area
  
• 4 spaces per 1,000 square feet of gross floor area
  
• A total of 1,000 spaces for any single parking facility
  
• There could be lower limits in Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) areas, based on DDOT input

DDOT recommended more stringent maxima, and a separate standard for TOD and non-TOD areas.

• 100,000 square feet of land area
  
• For retail uses, 2.5 spaces per 1,000 square feet of building area in TOD areas, and 4.5 spaces in non-TOD areas
  
• For non-retail uses, 1 space per 1,000 square feet in TOD areas, 3 in non-TOD areas
  
• A total of 500 spaces in TOD areas, 750 in non-TOD areas
  

In either option, the Board of Zoning Adjustment would have the latitude to increase caps under the relatively light special exception rules.

As an example, DDOT took a look at planned development in the NoMa neighborhood. They found that, at full build-out, 20 million square feet of development is expected. There are currently 7,400 parking spaces in the neighborhood, and 16,500 would be expected under current plans.

This could potentially lead to 12,000 new trips during peak hours. The street network would be unable to handle the additional traffic. Streets in adjacent neighborhoods would see increased use due to spillover, and arterial roads leading to the neighborhood, such as New York Avenue, would see significant increases in delays due to demand.

Since we can't widen the streets and won't be building freeways through the neighborhood, the city needs to find ways to encourage less automobile traffic and more utilization of the investments we've made in transit.

DC USA, the oft-cited example of building too much parking, is only 15 spaces too much for the less stringent OP standard, though twice as big as allowed under the DDOT proposal. Except for that total cap, at 2.1 spaces per 1,000 square feet, it comes in well within the parking ratios in both, meaning that a shopping center half the size of DC USA with just under half as much parking would still be permissible.

Meanwhile, the 9-acre, 860-space Home Depot and Giant parking lot near Rhode Island Avenue Metro would far exceed the 100,000 square foot land area limit, but has neither too many spaces in total nor too many compared to the building size for the OP standard. It would exceed both under DDOT's standard for a TOD area, but not the per square foot limit and not the total by much if it had been built in a non-TOD area. Worth noting, also, is the proposed shopping center at New York Avenue and South Dakota Avenue NE that would have over 3,000 parking spaces.

Please set aside time on next Monday evening to head down to Judiciary Square and testify in favor of parking regulations that will help shape a better and greater Washington, DC in the years to come. The hearing begins at 6:30 pm in Suite 220 at One Judiciary Square (441 4th Street NW). Call ahead (202-727-6311) to get on the list and say you are a "proponent" of the parking regulations, Case No. 08-06. You can also sign up to testify if you arrive on time to the Zoning Commission hearing room.

If you can't make it to the hearing, you can submit comments to the Zoning Commission by fax or email. You can email comments, but only if you sign your comments and send as a PDF of not more than 10 pages. Email your signed PDF to: zcsubmissions@dc.gov. Written testimony must be received on or before November 15th.