Shoreline: Parking Code Overhaul

Shoreline is on the cusp of a significant change to its urban landscape as the city actively moves to update its parking code. This isn't just a minor tweak; it's a fundamental shift in how the city approaches parking on private property for both vehicles and bicycles. The goal is to move beyond outdated requirements and embrace modern, flexible solutions that benefit residents, the environment, and future development.

The driving force behind this initiative comes directly from the 2024 Comprehensive Plan update, specifically Policy LU 3.2, which was adopted by the City Council. This policy explicitly states the need to "eliminate minimum parking ratios and encourage flexible parking configurations, such as shared parking, to reduce the amount of land dedicated to automobile parking" by mid-2025. City staff are already collaborating with the Planning Commission to put these forward-thinking goals into action.

It might surprise you to learn that mandatory off-street parking, or "parking minimums," only became common in the U.S. with the rise of car ownership in the 1920s, solidifying after World War II, fueled by the expansion of highways and suburbanization. The idea was simple: ensure enough parking for every development to prevent on-street congestion and spill-over into surrounding areas. However, these "one-size-fits-all" requirements can often be arbitrary, and after more than half a century, there's a growing body of evidence highlighting the unintended consequences of mandating more parking than truly needed.

Consider this staggering statistic: the U.S. is estimated to have approximately 2 billion parking spaces, but only 250 million cars. This oversupply, largely due to rigid parking minimums, has led to a cascade of issues. Mandating excessive parking can make building new homes and creating jobs needlessly expensive and complex, as significant resources must be dedicated to parking infrastructure. Furthermore, vast expanses of impermeable parking surfaces contribute to increased stormwater runoff, straining drainage systems and hiking up infrastructure maintenance costs. A typical parking space takes up about 200 square feet, not including aisles and access, meaning that in many cases, the sheer amount of space dedicated to parking can be larger than the building it serves, leading to incredibly inefficient land use.

By eliminating these outdated minimums, Shoreline aims to adopt best practices from other cities that have already successfully made similar transitions, promising to foster more efficient land use, support diverse development, and contribute to a more sustainable urban environment.