Denver Reduces Parking Requirements for Affordable Housing

The zoning change will significantly reduce the cost of building affordable housing developments.

2 minute read

July 13, 2021, 7:00 AM PDT

By Diana Ionescu @aworkoffiction


Underground Parking

MichaelGaida / Pixabay

The Denver City Council has approved a change to the city's zoning code that reduces minimum parking requirements for affordable housing developments, reports Daliah Singer. "Among other things, the just-updated code lowers the 'affordable housing alternative minimum parking ratio' for affordable housing projects in any district to 0.1, or one spot for every 10 units. It also upped the applicable AMI from 40 percent to 60 percent to encompass more housing."The update comes as an acknowledgement of the pivotal role parking requirements play in housing affordability and the vast number of unused parking spaces in the city's housing developments. A December 2020 study found that income-restricted properties provide, on average, "50 percent more parking than residents use." Another audit of affordable and supportive housing in the city found that "Denver’s zoning code required 5.5 times more parking than was needed."

The excess isn't just wasted space, Singer says. "Experts say parking is one of the most significant barriers to affordable housing projects both locally and across the country, sidelining or completely halting in-the-works projects because developers couldn’t make the zoning-required parking work." One parking space costs, on average, "between $20,000 and $30,000 to construct and maintain. The Shopworks/Fox Tuttle study valued the cost of unused parking at $9,284,000—the equivalent cost to build an entire 40-unit affordable housing property." 

Advocates of the zoning change hope it will inspire other cities to take similar actions. In Denver, "[t]he change is having an immediate impact: Charity’s House Apartments, a supportive housing complex in Five Points that Shopworks is involved with and had been halted for at least six months due to parking issues, is now able to break ground."

Sunday, July 11, 2021 in 5280

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Aerial view of town of Wailuku in Maui, Hawaii with mountains in background against cloudy sunset sky.

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly

Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

July 1, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 2, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Map of Haussmann's redesign of Paris in the 1850s through 1870s under Napoleon III.

In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking

Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?

June 30, 2025 - Tom Sanchez

Street with parking protected bike lane and parked cars in downtown Portland, Oregon.

Portland Raises Parking Fees to Pay for Street Maintenance

The city is struggling to bridge a massive budget gap at the Bureau of Transportation, which largely depleted its reserves during the Civd-19 pandemic.

July 8 - Willamette Week

Aerial view of Spokane, Washington with river in foreground.

Spokane Mayor Introduces Housing Reforms Package

Mayor Lisa Brown’s proposals include deferring or waiving some development fees to encourage more affordable housing development.

July 8 - The Spokesman-Review

Close-up on black and white "Bike Lane Ends" sign with bike logo.

Houston Mayor Kills Another Bike Lane

The mayor rejected a proposed bike lane in the Montrose district in keeping with his pledge to maintain car lanes.

July 8 - Houston Public Media

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

Associate/Senior Planner

Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development

Senior Planner

Heyer Gruel & Associates PA