REQUEST FOR DIRECTION
DATE: August 21, 2023 Report No. DEV-23-058
TO: Dan Horan, Chief Administrative Officer
FROM: Bill Brown, Director of Development Services, and Joel Clary, Director of Engineering and Public Works
SUBJECT:
Title
Review of the Integrated Parking Management Strategy and Parking Bylaw
End
ESSENTIAL QUESTION:
Does the Committee of the Whole have any additional input, questions, or concerns related to the draft Parking Strategy and Parking Bylaw?
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
That the Committee of the Whole recommend that Council receive: Staff Report DEV-23-058, the Integrated Parking Management Strategy, and the Parking Bylaw for information and direct staff to:
• bring forward actions in the Integrated Parking Management Strategy with budget and capacity implications for Council consideration as part of Council Priorities and budget processes.
• finalize the Parking Bylaw for Council’s consideration with the following additions:
o Parking in the Front Face of a Single or Two-Family Dwelling be permitted for suites.
o Include payment in lieu of providing parking provisions.
as described in Staff Report DEV-23-058.
Body
BACKGROUND:
Appendices
Appendix A: Integrated Parking Management Strategy
Appendix B: Parking Bylaw
Appendix C: Consultants’ Presentation
Chronology
May 2, 2022 - Council awards parking study contract to Urban Systems (see staff report EPW-22-007).
August 22, 2022 - Consultants present preliminary findings to the Committee of the Whole (see staff report DEV-22-076)
The development of an Integrated Parking Management Strategy and updating the Parking Bylaw was identified as a priority in the previous Strategic Plan. As on-site and on-street parking are inextricably linked, these two initiatives were integrated so that both the Parking Strategy and the Parking Bylaw would reflect a wholistic approach to the management of parking. Each of these documents is discussed below.
Integrated Parking Management Strategy
The Integrated Parking Management Strategy (Appendix A) is based on community engagement, staff, and Committee of the Whole input (see staff report DEV-22-076), and consultant recommendations. The purpose of the Strategy is to guide the Township’s approach to managing on-street parking in a way that aligns with current policies, including the Official Community Plan (OCP), Active Transportation Network Plan, and Council’s Strategic Priorities. The Strategy identifies the following five over-arching strategies:
A. Improve Neighbourhood Management
B. Support Sustainable Transportation
C. Modernize Curbside Management
D. Increase Parking Compliance
E. Establish Temporary Parking Management Tools
Each of these strategies are accompanied by corresponding actions. A summary of the strategies and actions can be found at the end of the Strategy on pages 57 and 58. These strategies were presented to the public at two open houses in 2022. Feedback from these open houses was incorporated to create the Strategy (Appendix A).
Parking Bylaw
The existing Parking Bylaw was adopted on April 5, 1993, and has been amended on several occasions to respond to the evolving parking realm. Notwithstanding these amendments, the Parking Bylaw is outdated and needs to be replaced with a new Parking Bylaw that responds to the changing urban character of Esquimalt and our evolving understanding of the impact that on-site parking has on almost all aspects of urban life. The Table below compares the provisions of the two Parking Bylaws and outlines the changes made.
|
Section |
Existing Parking Bylaw |
Proposed Parking Bylaw |
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Citation |
“Parking Bylaw, 1992, No. 2011” |
“Parking Bylaw, 2023, No. 3089” |
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Definitions |
Insufficient to meet the needs of a contemporary parking bylaw. |
Updated to include definitions related to bicycle parking and electrical vehicle charging. |
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Application |
|
This section was enhanced and reorganized for better interpretation. |
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Compliance |
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Relatively unchanged from the existing Bylaw. |
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Severability |
|
Relatively unchanged from the existing Bylaw. |
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Administration |
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Relatively unchanged from the existing Bylaw. |
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Obstruction |
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Relatively unchanged from the existing Bylaw. |
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Offence and Penalty |
Out of date. |
Updated |
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Provision and Maintenance of Off-Street Parking and Loading Areas |
- Allows up to 40 percent of the required parking to be located on adjacent lots. - Parking, loading, and storage of vehicles not permitted in landscaped areas. - No parking in front of front face of building except for Single- and Two-Family Dwellings built before September 16, 1957 |
- Recently Council has made several exceptions to the “no parking in front of the Front Face of a building (e.g. DADU’s and duplexes with suites - see the issues section for more details). |
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Design of Parking Areas |
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This section has been reorganized and distributed to appropriate sections in the new Bylaw. |
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Existing Uses |
|
Section added to improve clarity in interpretation of the Bylaw. |
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Parking Spaces for Persons with Disabilities |
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This section has been reorganized to make it easier to interpret. In addition, an illustration has been added to further the ease of interpretation. |
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Parking Requirements - Number of Off-Street Parking Spaces |
Fairly simple regulations based on the minimum number of required parking stall per unit for residential uses or per square meter for commercial and industrial uses. |
Minimum parking requirements have been updated based on field research and comparison with other peer municipalities. Residential requirements are now based on the type of unit (e.g. studio, one-bedroom, greater than one-bedroom). In addition, there is a reduction in the required parking for most uses located in a frequent transit area. |
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Frequent Transit Areas |
No section |
A map showing “Frequent Transit Areas” has been added. There are reduced parking requirements for most uses located in these areas. |
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Transportation Demand Management |
No section |
Allows for reductions in the number of required spaces for given demand management strategies. |
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Visitor Parking |
For Multiple Residential Zones 1 of every 4 parking spaces shall be designated “Visitor Parking”. |
For Townhouse and Multi-family dwelling uses, Visitor Parking is calculated at a rate of 0.15 spaces per dwelling unit in addition to the required number of parking stalls. |
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Dimensions of Off-Street Parking Spaces |
Parking space dimensions are determined by referring to a relatively complex set of tables differentiated by use. |
Simplified into one easy to use table. |
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Landscaping |
No section |
New section added requiring landscaping for surface parking containing 10 or more parking stalls |
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Pedestrian Facilities |
No section |
New requirements added for pedestrian walkways. |
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Loading Areas |
Only required for Commercial land uses |
Required for Commercial, Industrial, Office and Public Institutional, Cultural, Recreational, and Multi-family uses. |
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Bicycle and Mobility Scooter Parking Supply |
No section |
Detailed regulations were added related to both the supply requirements and dimensions of parking for bicycles and mobility scoters. |
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End of Trip Facility |
No section |
Requirements based on use and number of required bicycle parking spaces. |
ISSUES:
Staff have several issues they would like the Committee of the Whole to consider.
Integrated Parking Management Strategy
1) Resources - Each of the actions listed in the Strategy requires resources to implement, including budget and/or staff time. All the actions are feasible, but not within existing resources given other priorities. Staff recommend reviewing the prioritization of these actions and corresponding resource implications as part of the annual Council Strategic Priorities and budget processes to allow a review alongside other Township priorities. Does Council wish to prioritize these actions at Council Strategic Priority and budget time or provide alternative direction?
Parking Bylaw
1) Parking in the Front Face of a Single or Two-Family Dwelling - The current parking bylaw states that, “Parking Spaces in Residential zones shall be located no closer to the Front Lot Line than the front face of the Principal Building”. An exception is made for Single or Two-Family Detached Dwellings built prior to September 16, 1957. More recently, the Parking Bylaw was amended to make an exemption for the parking required for Detached Accessory Dwelling Units. In addition, a recent rezoning for a Two-Family Dwelling with suites allowed the parking for the suites to be in front of the Front Face of the Building. The reason for having the parking behind the Front Face of a Building is to avoid a street scape aesthetic dominated by cars. However, as “gentle densification” occurs in low density neighbourhoods, requiring the parking to be behind the front face of the building usually requires a longer driveway and therefore less potential permeable green space. Given that most people park their cars in front of the Front Face of a Building the design objective is not generally achieved. Does Council wish to carry this provision forward in the new parking bylaw or dispense with this requirement?
2) Payment in lieu of providing parking - Section 525 (1) (d) of the Local Government Act allows a local government to accept payment from a landowner who does not comply with the parking requirements in the Bylaw. This money must be placed in a reserve fund and can only be used to provide new and existing off-street parking spaces, or transportation infrastructure that support walking, bicycling, public transit, or alternative forms of transportation. Given that the new Parking Bylaw represents contemporary parking standards, there should be little need for reducing those standards as has been the practice of Council under the existing Bylaw because it was over 30 years old and did not represent the current parking reality. Although the Township has not used this provision of the Local Government Act before, it may be advisable to start implementing this provision now for the few cases when Council may consider a reduction in parking. Several Local Governments in BC use this system. For example, Kelowna’s “Payment in Lieu of Off-Street Parking” Bylaw requires the payment of up to $33,000/stall in certain areas. The Bylaw is dated 1997 and there is a clause stating that the amount will be increased annually by the Consumer Price Index. That would mean that the cost per stall in 2023 would be $57,322. The City of Surrey allows the required parking to be reduced by up to 10% with a payment-in-lieu of $20,000.00/stall. Finally, in Squamish, the cash payment in lieu of parking is $30,000/stall. Would Council like provisions for “payment in lieu of parking” to be added to the new Parking Bylaw?
ALTERNATIVES:
1) That the Committee of the Whole recommend that Council receive: Staff Report DEV-23-058, the Integrated Parking Management Strategy, and the Parking Bylaw for information and direct staff to:
• bring forward actions in the Integrated Parking Management Strategy with budget and capacity implications for Council consideration as part of Council Priorities and budget processes.
• finalize the Parking Bylaw for Council’s consideration with the following additions:
o Parking in the Front Face of a Single or Two-Family Dwelling be permitted for suites.
o Include payment in lieu of providing parking provisions.
as described in Staff Report DEV-23-058.
2) That the COTW provide alternative direction to staff.
3) That the COTW request further information from staff.