Atlanta Revisits Downtown Parking

"Contrary to public perception, downtown Atlanta has plenty of parking. It's just that the parking is not always easy to find."

A recent study identified nearly 95,000 parking spaces in downtown Atlanta -- and measure the combined occupancy of all parking was 66 percent. Yet a lack of signage was preventing full utilization.

"The Atlanta City Council also is considering new zoning regulations for downtown, which will make all new surface parking lots and stand-alone decks illegal in much of the central business district. The regulations also will reinforce that all parking structures have retail or other activity at street level.

This is not a new idea. In 2001, the Midtown community passed a new zoning ordinance that restricted new parking lots and stand-alone decks. It also required developers to mask parking garages and to have retail on the ground floor.

It's a concept that downtown and other business nodes have endorsed. Nothing destroys a vibrant city street more than a dead parking lot or a parking deck with a blank wall."