Discussion: Parking ratios in Transect zones.

This report is provided at the request of Council and is for informational purposes only.

The City of Flagstaff Zoning Code was adopted on November 1, 2011.  A significant step in the replacement of the Land Development Code with the Zoning Code was the inclusion of a Form Based ("Transect") Code.  The intent of the Transect Code was to balance the community's sense of character with the existing Euclidean zoning, which entitles properties to develop with densities and intensities far greater than what is currently developed within the Downtown, Southside, Townsite, and North Downtown neighborhoods.   As an incentive for using the Transect Code, on-site parking requirements were reduced.  Reduced parking requirements are also a strategy to encourage more housing, reduce automobile congestion, promote mode shift from automobiles and encourage walkable neighborhoods.  This staff report provides a comparison of the required on-site parking for uses within the conventional zones versus the Transect zones.

The Transect Zones provide specific parking requirements for Residential Uses, Retail Trade and Service Uses only.  Any other land use type other than these three types is required to meet the same standards as the conventional zones.  However, the majority of uses allowed in the Transect Zones are categorized as one of these three types.  Other uses outside of these three types include recreation, education and public assembly uses, telecommunication facilties and urban agriculture. The Transect Parking Standards are listed below for the existing zones:

T3 Neighborhood (T3N.1)
Residential Studio/1 bedroom - 0.5 space/unit min
Residential 2+ bedroom - 2 spaces/unit min
Retail Trade, Service Uses - 2 spaces/1,000 sf min

T4 Neighborhood (T4N.1)
Residential Studio/1 bedroom - 1 space/unit min
Residential 2+ bedroom - 2 spaces/unit min
Retail Trade, Service Uses - less than 2000 sf -  no spaces required 
Retail Trade, Service Uses - greater than 2,000 sf - 3 spaces/1,000 sf min above first 2,000 sf

T5 Main Street (T5)
Residential - 1 space/1,500 sf min
Ground Floor Retail Trade, Service Uses - less than 2000 sf -  no spaces required 
Ground Floor Retail Trade, Service Uses - greater than 2,000 sf - 3 spaces/1,000 sf min above first 2,000 sf
Upper Floors - 3 spaces/1,000 sf min

T6 Downtown (T6)
Residential - 1 space/1,500 sf min
Ground Floor Retail Trade, Service Uses - less than 2000 sf -  no spaces required 
Ground Floor Retail Trade, Service Uses - greater than 2,000 sf - 2 spaces/1,000 sf min above first 2,000 sf
Upper Floors - 2 spaces/1,000 sf min

The conventional zoning standards are as follows regardless of zoning district:

Market Rate Residential
Single-family Dwelling (Attached and Detached) - 2.0 parking spaces per unit
Multi-family Dwelling, Duplex and Triplex
  Studio - 1.25 spaces per unit
  1 bedroom - 1.5 spaces per unit
  2-3 bedroom - 2.0 spaces per unit
  4 bedroom - 2.5 spaces per unit
  5+ bedroom - 0.5 spaces for the first 4 bedrooms plus 0.5 spaces for each additional bedroom
Guest Spaces for Multi-family Dwelling, Duplex and Triplex - 0.25 for each 2+ bedroom unit

The parking standards for commercial uses are much more specific in the conventional zones than in the transect zones.  For example, Retail Trade in the conventional zones is broken down into 8 different categories including bars, convenience stores, drive-throughs, furniture and appliance stores, general retail, markets, restaurants and shopping centers. The following are examples of the commercial parking standards for general retail and general service uses.

General Retail Business - 1 space per 300 gsf
General Services - 1 space per 300 gsf