Neighborhood Parking Benefit Program Summit
Warren Jimenez
Representatives from the Neighborhood and Business Associations gathered together to hear more about the Neighborhood Parking Benefit Program. Approximately 50 people attended to listen to presentations about the "Cost of Free Parking," the Lloyd District Transportation Management Association and the Bureau of Planning Corridor Study.
Sam opened the summit taking questions and concerns about what they know about this program. Our first presenter was Douglas Kolozsvari's, Environmental Planner for the Bay Area Air Quality Management District. He was a graduate student researcher for Professor Donald Shoup, one of the leading researchers on parking policies and author of "The High Cost of Free Parking." His presentation focused on the cost of free parking and the example of Old Town Pasedena.
Next, Rick Williams, Executive Director for Lloyd District Transportation Management Association, discussed the benefits of metered parking in the district.
Steve Dotterrer, Principle Planner with Portland Bureau of Planning, talked about their corridor study.
The summit can be viewed via streaming video, just click here!
The next steps will be to meet with each corridor to discuss initial data analysis. Coming soon will be a website for this program.....stay tuned!
Posted by Warren Jimenez on May 26, 2006
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Bravo, bravo - Douglas Kolozsvari deserves kudos for his fantastically bias presentation. His professor who helped to brainwash him would be proud - BUT - Douglas would have his project downgraded due to some conflicts within his presentation (in a few years he'll probably figure ways to skirt issues that he doesn't want to deal with directly, in this presentation he just showed that he's still green in dealing with conflicting statements).
He tells us on slide #10 that structured parking costs SOOOO much more than street parking - which we are left to conclude that structured parking is undesirable. Then on slide #28 he suggests that downtown businesses should shift their employees to long-term parking which he defines as "off-street" which he earlier defined parking structures to be - I hate it when my own words trap me. He also mentions on slide #12 that "Distorted Transportation Choices" lead to "More expensive goods, less affordable housing" - excuse me, but our 'urban growth boundary' and our high subsidy of streetcar and light rail is what has pushed our housing costs higher in this area - so he's right but not in the way in which he wanted. Slide #18 was, I'm sure, suppose to enrage folks that "we don't want to see THAT around here" - but given THAT scenario versus living in a high rise or a frigging row house (that my wife once described as 3 single wide trailers stacked on top of one another - and if you don't have an end unit then the only light you have coming through windows is at the front and back of your dwelling) or a "loft" - I'll take the "tract housing" any day of the week. At least I'm not next to my neighbor, to where I hear them showering, arguing and making love. At least I have a backyard for BBQ and a private place that my kids can play.
I wasn't there, I didn't get to hear his voice and how he tried to sway folks (but I'm sure that he did) - just another example of the "WE HATE CARS" crowd. Really nice propaganda, I especially like slide #14 where he uses a Soviet maxim, which he identifys as such - I'm not sure in what context he was trying to use it, but to me, the soviet style of almost everything is what "Smart Growth" is all about, ditto the "progressive" agenda that this city and state have taken on.
Just my opinion, and I could be wrong (but I'm probably not).
Posted by: mmmarvel | May 27, 2006 9:50:13 AM