Required parking spaces are the number of off-street parking spaces a zoning code requires a development to provide, usually calculated from the land use and its size, such as spaces per dwelling unit or per 1,000 square feet of floor area.
Requirements are usually minimums, and some codes also set maximums. They are typically adapted from national rates, such as ITE parking generation data, with local adjustments. Because they apply to every site, they shape the cost, density and design of development across a city. See parking ratios.
Reducing or replacing requirements
- Many cities have reduced or eliminated minimums, especially near transit; California’s AB 2097 bars most minimums near major transit. See parking minimums.
- Reductions for shared parking, transit access or transportation demand management programs.
- Fees in lieu, paid into a district parking fund.
- Maximums, which cap supply in dense areas.
For owners and developers
- Removing a minimum does not remove demand. Lenders, tenants and buyers still expect parking where they need it, so a demand study remains the right basis for supply. See parking demand analysis.
The Parkonomics view
A requirement is a guess written into law. Where it is too high, it builds empty stalls at the cost of housing and storefronts; where it is gone, owners still need to know what their users will need. Replace the guess with a study.
Related terms: Parking Minimums, Parking Ratios, Parking Ordinances, AB 2097, Parking Demand Analysis