Portlanders for Parking Reform

Better Parking Policy For The City of Roses

TonyJ

Parking Minimums Effectively Repealed In Portland – What’s Next?

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It took almost four years, but Portland’s growing Shoupista movement succeeded in effectively repealing off-street parking requirements imposed in 2013.  This victory demonstrates that parking policy is a viable target for reformers looking to change city policies to encourage more affordable housing, increase use of alternative transportation modes, and take action on climate change.

On November 22nd, the Portland City Council voted to waive minimum parking requirements in new developments near frequent transit if those developments contain affordable housing units. The Comprehensive Plan containing the new rules should go into effect in January 2018, but the parking requirements will most likely fade away much sooner, in February 2017. On December 13, 2016, council is poised to approve an inclusionary housing package that includes the same waiver for parking requirements in exchange for affordable housing. The inclusionary housing rules require affordable homes in any building with 20 or more units.  Since parking requirements aren’t triggered until 31 units are built, parking requirements will be waived for (nearly) all new buildings starting in February 2017.

Mayor Charlie Hales casts vote to repeal parking minimums.
For the second time this year, Mayor Hales gives a shoutout to Portlanders for Parking Reform.

The hearing, which you can watch here, was intriguing. The passage of amendment 34 was in serious doubt up to the day of the vote. Commissioner Dan Saltzman had gone on record as opposing removal of the requirements (he wanted to maintain them as a bargaining chit for the inclusionary housing bill) and Commissioner Nick Fish was keeping his cards close to his chest on this one. Commissioner Fish, who has a reputation for being a consensus builder, ended up crafting a compromise amendment which tied the waiver to affordable housing, this brought Saltzman into the fold and ended up winning support for a 4-1 vote in which Commissioner Steve Novick cast a protest vote. Commissioner Amanda Fritz’s support for the amendment (in fact she brought the amendment to the table) was so surprising that it seemed there had to be some catch, a poison pill perhaps, in the amendment. As it turns out, Commissioner Fritz was confused about what she was voting for and has asked council to hold another vote. We expect that Commissioner Novick will switch his vote as well if they re-vote, maintaining a 4-1 majority for this amendment.  

Commissioner Amanda Fritz is so committed to car culture that she wants to make sure her record doesn’t reflect a vote against more parking for cars.   

We Did It And We’ll Do It Again

Portland Shoupistas has grown, in just one short year, into Portlanders for Parking Reform, a group with credibility and a number of significant wins under our belt. Progressive parking policy is a critical component to providing more affordable housing and encouraging people to drive less, but there have been few, if any, examples of grassroots movements committed to demanding parking reform.

Thank you and congratulations to the hundreds of people who have participated in our actions, amplified our message, and gotten informed about the high costs of our current parking policies. We have a lot more work to do, in Portland and elsewhere, and we plan to keep at it.

What Is Next?

This next week there are two important votes at Portland City Council that are related to parking minimums.

Inclusionary Housing

On Tuesday, December 13th, council will hold a hearing a vote on the Inclusionary Housing package mentioned above. Portland’s Shoupistas are encouraged to support this package as it is the action which will effectively repeal parking minimums. There is a change we would like to see in this package: developers who pay in-lieu fees rather than building affordable units are still required to build parking; these developers should be offered an in-lieu option for parking as well.  Those additional fees could go directly to affordable housing funds or towards affordable transit subsidies for low income residents.  You can send an email to cctestimony@portlandoregon.gov and to dan@portlandoregon.gov with the subject “Inclusionary Housing.”  Include your name and address.

Residential Parking Permits

On Thursday, December 15th, council will hold a hearing and vote on a new overnight Residential Parking Permit program for Portland neighborhoods.  This program, which is very close to what we described in our post in January 2016, is a critical step towards managing on-street parking in Portland. The proposal is fairly flexible and we expect that over the next few years a very strong permit program will take shape.

There are two important parts to this proposal that Shoupistas should support. First, update purpose of Portland’s permit program to clarify that it is a “tool to achieve the City’s mode split goals by promoting the use of mass transit, car pooling, bicycling, and walking.” Secondly, the resolution will grant administrative rule-making power, including base permit prices, for the program to the Director of the Portland Bureau of Transportation.  This is very important as it will allow the management of the public resource of on-street parking to be implemented with much less political interference.

You can send an email encouraging council to pass this package to cctestimony@portlandoregon.gov  with the subject “Residential Permit Program.”  Include your name and address.

Ask Your Favorite Local Business To Support Better Parking Policy

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Our efforts to eliminate minimum parking requirements have gotten a boost this last week from the Portland Independent Chamber of Commerce (PICOC) and you can help our campaign by supporting theirs.

PICOC is a coalition of progressive business and community leaders who believe Portland can do better. We’ve heard from advocacy groups about the impact of parking minimums on housing affordability, not to mention sustainability and livability. We’ve also heard loud and clear from businesses that Portland’s current parking management strategy is failing. We think it’s time for Portland to chart a new course.

A business voice in favor of these changes could be pivotal to this vote. Portland’s City Commissioners need to hear from forward-thinking Portland businesses that are ready for comprehensive parking reform. We are calling on local businesses to join with our testimony to City Council. Over 30 businesses have signed on so far. Please ask your favorite local businesses to sign on!

Time is running out so don’t delay! Tweet, email, Facebook, or message this link to those businesses: https://medium.com/@hellopicoc/portlands-parking-policies-are-bad-for-rent-and-bad-for-business-let-s-fix-them-646f6bbb342f#.1yqv4b82k

Portland’s Parking Problem Is An Excess Of Free On-Street Parking

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Everyone needs to wash their clothes. Society provides a number of ways for people to manage this necessity. Some people wash their clothes by hand. Some people pay for a laundry service to wash their clothes. Some people take their clothes to a nearby laundromat.  Some people wash their clothes in a communal laundry room. Some people own their own washer and dryer. Some people own very expensive washers and dryers and pay people to wash their clothes in their own home.

A Laundromat

Imagine a city where laundry service is free, first come first serve, for as much as the service could handle. Many people get up very early to take their laundry to the service and they don’t own a washer and dryer.  Imagine local laundromats are free as well. Most people never consider buying a washer and dryer. Laundromats are very crowded day and night and laundry services reach capacity early in the morning. Should this city require all residents to buy a washer and dryer?  Should this city require all new residences, or at least some of them, to have on-site washing machines and dryers? Of course not. The laundry services and laundromats should stop providing free services. People will decide if they are willing to pay for those services. Developers/landlords will provide washers and dryers for residents who prefer the convenience and are willing to shoulder the expense of having that luxury amenity.

Everyone in Portland needs to be able to get around.  Some people walk, ride, or take transit, cabs, or Lyfts to their destination. Some people own personal cars. Those people who own cars need places to park them and on-street parking in Portland is like the imaginary laundry service and laundromats, free. In some parts of town, on-street parking is congested day and night. In some neighborhoods residents rush home after work to find a space and the street is packed by 7PM. Should the city solve this problem by requiring some or all new residences to have their own supply of parking? It shouldn’t, but it does.

Cars Parked on StreetContrary to the lead of this KATU news article, Portland doesn’t have a shortage of parking. It’s even disputable that Portland has a shortage of free on-street parking. Instead, Portland has a shortage of political courage to implement effective parking management strategies.

Concerned neighbors would like to continue to require developers to build an “adequate” amount of off-street parking.  The problem is that, when on-street parking is literally or practically free, there is no way to tell what an adequate supply of parking is.

There is no magic ratio that will meet parking demand in a dense neighborhood. Excess parking supply will induce demand. As Donald Shoup famously quipped “minimum parking requirements act like a fertility drug for cars.” Opponents to parking reform point out that surveys say 7 of every 10 new residents in mixed use developments own a car when they move in. They say developers should build at least 7 parking spaces for every 10 apartments.

Arbitrary parking ratios make as much sense as arbitrary washer and dryer ratios.

The city doesn’t require in-unit or even on-site washing machines, but somehow, without the benefit of city regulations, people get their clothes washed and here is no such thing as “laundry congestion” and no one speaks of a “laundry nightmare.”

The proper way to determine the right amount of parking for a building is to manage the on-street parking supply with market rate residential permits. If Portlanders truly want to build an equitable, walkable, and sustainable city they should count the on-street parking spaces in their neighborhoods and sell some fraction of that number of parking permits at a price that manages demand.

Portland City Council will hear from citizens on November 17th about an amendment to eliminate minimum parking requirements for new developments near frequent service transit.  Join us in encouraging them to pass this amendment.

Email City Council By November 17!

Everyone can do this, do it now!

Write to cputestimony@portlandoregon.gov with subject line “Comprehensive Plan Implementation”  Please cc: or bcc: pdxshoupistas@gmail.com.

Tell them in your own words that housing is more important than car parking and they should pass Amendment 34 to the Comprehensive plan to eliminate minimum parking requirements in mixed use zones.

We have talking points if you need them!

Join Us on November 17th and Give Testimony

The biggest impact will come from people showing and speaking to council.  Council needs to hear from people who face rent increases and displacement due to anti-affordable housing policy like parking requirements.  Testifying is easy.  Simply state, in your own words, why this issue concerns you and tell council that you want them to eliminate minimum parking requirements.

We have prepared a document with talking points for your convenience.

November 17th, 2PM @ Portland City Hall

If you plan to testify, please RSVP via this form so we have an idea of what support we can expect. We may be able to save you time by signing you up.

Write to the Commissioners

Send an email to the members of City Council.  We suggest you do this by November 17th.

Write to Commissioner Steve Novick, Mayor Charlie Hales, Commissioner Nick Fish, Commissioner Dan Saltzman, and Commissioner Amanda Fritz.  Let them know that you value housing for people over shelter for cars.

Let City Council Know: Affordable Housing Outranks Parking For Cars

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Note: For many of us it is hard to think of much else these days than the recent election results. Many people are afraid, confused, depressed, and discouraged. Local issues like the Residential Infill Project or parking minimums might seem inconsequential to many of us, but they aren’t.  City Council is still meeting, they are hearing from residents, deliberating, and making decisions that will affect you, your neighbors, and your family for many years. If you feel hopeless right now about our national situation, we encourage you to work to make positive change where you definitely can, locally.

Next Thursday, November 17th, Portland City Council will hear from citizens about the proposed amendments to the Comprehensive Plan Early Implementation Project. As we found out last week, Mayor Charlie Hales heard from nearly 80 Shoupistas and has proposed to eliminate minimum parking requirements for new developments in Mixed-Use Zones near frequent service transit.

There are many reasons this is a good idea.  Parking is expensive and makes housing less affordable.  Parking takes up space and leaves less room for housing. Parking brings more cars to our neighborhoods and makes our air dirtier and our streets more dangerous. Parking requirements aren’t even effective at reducing on-street parking congestion; you can force a developer to build a garage, but you can’t force a tenant to rent a stall in it when on-street parking is free!

City council needs to hear from you!  Opponents to this amendment are organizing and will be sending in letters of their own.  We need to make sure council understands that affordable housing outranks parking for cars.

Email City Council By November 18 @ 5PM!

Everyone can do this, do it now!

Write to cputestimony@portlandoregon.gov with subject line “Comprehensive Plan Implementation”  Please cc: or bcc: pdxshoupistas@gmail.com.

Tell them in your own words that housing is more important than car parking and they should pass Amendments 34 to the Comprehensive plan to eliminate minimum parking requirements in mixed use zones.

We have talking points if you need them!

Write to the Commissioners

Send an email to the members of City Council.  We suggest you do this by November 18th.

Write to Commissioner Steve Novick, Mayor Charlie Hales, Commissioner Nick Fish, Commissioner Dan Saltzman, and Commissioner Amanda Fritz.  Let them know that you value housing for people over shelter for cars.  Let’s plan for the future we want for Portland and not a smog-choked-and-gridlocked playground for the wealthy.

Portland City Council To Consider Repealing 2013 Minimum Parking Requirements

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Minimum parking requirements imposed in 2013 have contributed to the housing crisis in Portland by increasing the cost of building new apartments and reducing the supply of new homes. Three years later Portland has a toolkit full of more effective solutions to manage on-street parking concerns and Mayor Hales is proposing to repeal those three-year-old regulations.

In October, Portlanders for Parking Reform proposed that no off-site parking be required in the new Mixed-Use Zones (MUZ) created in the Comprehensive Plan. This plan, which will go into effect in January 2018, replaces the current commercial zoning in our centers and corridors with zoning that encourages housing and active ground floor uses.  More than 60 Portlanders wrote to city council asking for the elimination of the current parking requirements and it seems that they were heard. Amendment 34 to the Early Implementation package of the comprehensive plan is summarized:

This amendment would change the recommended draft to remove minimum off-street parking requirements from sites close to frequent transit. This would undo a 2012 code change that imposed minimum requirements for developments of more than 30 units.

In addition, Mayor Hales has proposed Amendment 51 which directs PBOT to develop comprehensive Transportation Demand Management (TDM) to encourage residents in neighborhoods with these mixed-use buildings to forgo car ownership and use transit, active transportation, and car share services instead.  When coupled with residential parking permits and other parking management tools, a healthy market for on-street parking can be developed which will lead to adequate, but not excessive, parking being built in new buildings.

The burden of the cost of required parking is borne by all residents, including those who cannot afford cars themselves. This is an exclusionary policy that restricts the access of lower income citizens to areas of opportunity. Parking requirements do little to alleviate on-street parking congestion and, instead, encourage higher rates of car ownership which undermines the cities goals for climate action and alternative mode shares.

Portlanders for Parking Reform encourages citizens to send in testimony to City Council supporting this amendment.

How To Help

Join Us on November 17th and Give Testimony

The biggest impact will come from people showing and speaking to council.  Council needs to hear from people who face rent increases and displacement due to anti-affordable housing policy like parking requirements.  Testifying is easy.  Simply state, in your own words, why this issue concerns you and tell council that you want them to eliminate minimum parking requirements.

We have prepared a document with talking points for your convenience.

November 17th, 2PM @ Portland City Hall

If you plan to testify, please RSVP via this form so we have an idea of what support we can expect. We may be able to save you time by signing you up.

Send testimony to City Council

Before midnight on Thursday, November 17th you can send written testimony to cputestimony@portlandoregon.gov with subject line “Comprehensive Plan Implementation: Amendment 34”

Write to the Commissioners

Send an email to the members of City Council.  We suggest you do this by November 17th.

Write to Commissioner Steve Novick, Mayor Charlie Hales, Commissioner Nick Fish, Commissioner Dan Saltzman, and Commissioner Amanda Fritz.  Let them know that you value housing for people over shelter for cars.  Let’s plan for the future we want for Portland and not a smog-choked-and-gridlocked playground for the wealthy.