Parking minimums raise housing costs, increase greenhouse gas emissions, and make our streets more dangerous.

I am writing to call upon the Mayor and City Council to take the necessary steps, zoning and otherwise, to:

1) remove minimum parking requirements across all of Somerville,

2) expand parking maximums across Somerville, tailored by area to local needs, and

3) improve public transit by increasing dedicated bus lanes.

Today, the City of Somerville requires new developments to build excess parking

Parts of Somerville are currently subject to "minimum parking" mandates, which require new developments to include a minimum number of off-street parking spots in new construction projects. This requirement invites more cars into our community, an outcome that works against Somerville’s climate and street safety goals. Moreover, fears about insufficient parking aren’t supported by the data– the number of residential on-street parking permits has remained stable from 2018 to 2023, while business parking permits have actually dropped 50% over the same period.

Parking minimums waste space and raise housing costs

Unnecessary parking is an expensive waste of space that increases housing costs. Santa Clara University and the University of California found that when developers bundle a garage space into a unit, it “adds about 17 percent to a unit’s rent.” The EPA reported in 2006 that garage parking construction costs can range from $2,000 to $29,000 (non-inflation-adjusted dollars) per parking spot. In areas of in-fill development, the EPA cited scenarios in which each on-site parking space could reduce new housing units or other uses by 25 percent. Such easily avoided impacts are unacceptable as Somerville continues to experience a housing affordability crisis.

Parking minimums work against Somerville’s climate ambitions

Parking minimums encourage car ownership and car trips, in direct contradiction to Somerville’s stated ambitions around climate mitigation. For example, in the city’s recent 2024 draft Climate Forward Plan update, Somerville commits to the “removal of impervious surface as well as conversion of parking to green infrastructure.” The draft also includes a goal to “reduce single occupancy vehicle trips and promote zero-carbon mobility options.” Both are worthwhile goals, but are directly challenged by our current minimum parking requirements.

Parking minimums incentivize car trips, and more dangerous streets

Requiring developers to build extra parking caters to a car-centric future we must avoid. While the city deserves credit for investing to make Somerville easier and safer to walk and bike, we still have far to go. Road crashes are decreasing, but remain too frequent. Meanwhile, vehicle speeds, in the City’s own words, “remain unacceptably high.” It’s well-documented that cars cause air pollution and endanger health, calling into question the prudence of any policies that incentivize car-ownership in dense urban settings like Somerville.

Citywide parking maximums enable the future we need

Somerville already acknowledges the dangers of excess parking and more cars, and limits parking in transit areas. Yet the costs to our community of excess parking don’t disappear outside of transit areas. Parking maximums are a recognized solution already in place in many cities, from Nashville, to Minneapolis, to our neighbors in Boston. Expanding parking maximums citywide and tailoring them appropriately to various zoning areas will help the city better achieve our sustainability and affordable development goals.

Vehicle trips are still necessary for some neighbors

We recognize that residents who use a wheelchair, have poor eyesight, sprain an ankle, or work a job with a long commute might still see a car as their preferred safe, fast, or convenient way to travel. But this is no argument for the city to allow developers to add unlimited parking as part of new construction. And owning a car is expensive. The City should stop forcing developers to treat car transport as the presumptive transport option for residents. In contrast, increasing the amount of dedicated bus lanes across the city would provide more reliable service that better meets the needs of our residents.

A more livable Somerville

Simply put, parking takes up space that could be better used– whether as more housing units, as green space to grow our urban canopy, or for other kinds of accessible public space. For anyone in Somerville who envisions a greener, safer Somerville with more affordable housing and less pollution– enacting parking maximums is a commonsense approach to supporting all of the above.

We the undersigned,

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Sources:

“Mobility & Safety in Somerville: 2023 Key Performance Indicators,” Somerville Office of strategic Planning & Community Development. https://s3.amazonaws.com/somervillema-live/s3fs-public/2023-Mobility-KPIs.pdf?mc_cid=017503e1c2&mc_eid=a649ba8ec7

“Parking Spaces / Community Places: Finding the Balance through Smart Growth Solutions.” EPA. https://perma.cc/Y7VH-7ZSN ​

DRAFT- Somerville Climate Forward Plan Update: Goals, Strategies, and Actions. https://docs.google.com/document/jd/1m_EGwkHa7mGJ9xxj5crnZeLVbCV3W3yW/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=102983727812229078689&rtpof=true&sd=true

“Mobility & Safety in Somerville: 2023 Key Performance Indicators,” Somerville Office of strategic Planning & Community Development. https://s3.amazonaws.com/somervillema-live/s3fs-public/2023-Mobility-KPIs.pdf?mc_cid=017503e1c2&mc_eid=a649ba8ec7 ​

“Asthma and Automotive Emissions” by Philip A.Bromber. Air Pollution, the Automobile, and Public Health. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK218136/ ​

Legistar. https://nashville.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=5808071&GUID=6F78DAC5-78AD-432B-B8A1-B72592B45C57&FullText=1 ​

“Parking, Loading, and Mobility Regulations,” Minneapolis 2040. https://minneapolis2040.com/implementation/parking-loading-and-mobility-regulations/ ​

“Maximum Parking Ratios,” City of Boston. https://www.boston.gov/departments/transportation/maximum-parking-ratios ​