Seattleites Predict A-Park-alypse If Parking Minimums Are Lifted

Reflecting the widespread (and, again, mistaken) belief that the legislation would eliminate existing parking spaces, most commenters opposed to lifting the parking requirement argued that the change would make it impossible for them to park in their neighborhoods.

For example, one property owner in Queen Anne said she already had to walk several blocks to get to her condo and that people in the neighborhood park on curbs, lawns, and any other illegal space they can find, and a self-identified landlord in West Seattle said she currently provides two spaces for every unit in her apartment building, and that without high parking minimums people would “park on the side streets and in residential areas and we can’t even get out of our driveway.”

On the flip side, Seattle Central Community College vice president Michael Pham said it was “cost-prohibitive” to require the school, located in the middle of one of Seattle’s densest neighborhoods to provide parking for students who mostly commute by transit. And Eric de Place of the Sightline Institute pointed out that both in per capita terms and in real numbers, people—particularly young people—are driving less. “When I filled up the tank last weekend in my car, gas was $4.30 a gallon, so it’s not surprising that if you’re a young person starting out or trying to make ends meet if you’re of modest means, car ownership is not necessarily a viable alternative” anymore, de Place said.