Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Streetsblog

California APA Pooh Poohs Statewide Parking Reform Efforts

Parking reform is always difficult. Decades of market-distorting parking minimums have made people feel more than a little bit entitled to subsidized off-street car storage. (See this reaction from a Seattle resident: "We need parking to survive.")

false

But parking reform makes housing more affordable and reduces artificial incentives to drive. So it's disappointing to see an influential group of professional planners -- who really ought to know better -- fail to emphasize the high cost of laws that force developers to build expensive, and potentially unnecessary, amounts of car parking.

That's the take of Stephen Smith at Market Urbanism. With the California legislature considering a bill that would lift parking mandates in transit-accessible areas, Smith notes that the state chapter of the American Planning Association displayed a distinct lack of enthusiasm in a recent email to members:

Minimum parking requirement reform bills have been floating around the California legislature for a while – last year it was AB 710, and this year it’s AB 904, both authored by East Bay Asm. Nancy Skinner.

This email blast to members from the American Planning Association’s California chapter doesn’t take an official position and does ask at the end for input, but their feelings on the bill are kind of hard to miss:

The APA's email contained this warning:

APA California is not opposed to the concept of lower parking requirements near transit when a community decides it is right for them – the issue is that a one-sized-fits-all statewide standard is not appropriate.

Let's be clear: We're not talking about something tremendously radical here. The bill wouldn't even get rid of parking minimums. It would simply set some limits on the parking mandates that municipalities can establish in transit-accessible areas.

The California APA should be one of the biggest advocates of this legislation. Hopefully they get some smart feedback and it's enough to turn their heads.

Elsewhere on the Network today: The Political Environment outlines how a 1990s civil rights complaint might save the Milwaukee Streetcar from Governor Scott "No Train" Walker. Streets.mn explains how open streets events and food trucks have helped revive street culture in Minneapolis. And Commuter Page Blog shares a video explaining how Arlington, Virginia increased its population without increasing traffic congestion.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

NYPD’s Push To Criminalize Cycling Spells Trouble For Immigrant Workers

Safety for the community? Great. But aren't delivery workers part of the community, too?

May 9, 2025

Friday’s Headlines: Habemus Knicksum Edition

It was a big day yesterday, but we're not on the sports or the religion desk, so let's get to our news.

May 9, 2025

Friday Video: Who Ruined Outdoor Dining?

We sent our own video team to find out.

May 9, 2025

Decision 2025: Mayoral Hopefuls Discuss E-Bikes … With Joy and Concern

E-bikes are a vital tool for delivery workers and for people seeking to reduce their use of private cars. What would you do to both expand e-bike use and make streets safer? And the answers are...

Live from Albany: Hochul’s ‘Safety’ Measures Stripped from Budget

Lawmakers dropped three initiatives that Gov. Hochul said would have made roadways safer (though, as we'll see, that's very much in question). Let's review them.

May 9, 2025
See all posts