For a long time, surface parking lots blanketed Maryland's Montgomery County. Developers and county officials now prioritize mixed-use infill with parking concealed underground.
As the affluent area grows more urban, Montgomery County looks forward to a decline in asphalt and concrete. "Many big public lots near shopping districts or public transportation hubs also happen to be on some of the most prime real estate in the county. Developers would rather turn them into something like The Flats at Bethesda, which will have restaurants, stores and upscale condos."
Some longtime parkers experienced separation anxiety. "When we closed the parking ... I didn't realize how many people had a personal reserved parking space in a public lot. So many came up and said 'You took my parking away. You took my space away.' But the end result is what was 300 surface parking spaces is now 960 underground parking spaces and what we hope people will appreciate as beautiful stuff above."
"Surface parking lots are becoming increasingly obsolete, says County Executive Isiah Leggett." Between less surface parking, more bikes, and declining VMT, Montgomery seems set to eventually wean itself off car dependence.
FULL STORY: Big Outdoor Parking Lots Look Like Something Else To Montgomery County
Depave Paradise: Reclaiming Parking Lots for Park Space
The promoters of a new park hope to provide a model for how replacing surface parking lots with green space can mitigate urban heat and boost urban biodiversity.
On the Massive Carbon Savings of Gentle Density
A thought experiment compares the carbon impact of three new single family homes with the same block if it contained a duplex, a triplex, and a fourplex.
AIA: Demand for High-Density Development Is Down
For the first time in four years, a quarterly survey indicates “market saturation in urban areas.”
Red Cities, Blue Cities, and Crime
Homicides rose across the nation in 2020 and 2021. But did they rise equally in all cities, or was the situation worse in some than in others?
The Shifting Boomer Bulge: More Bad News for America’s Housing Crisis?
In the first of a two-part series, PlaceMakers’ Ben Brown interviews housing guru Arthur C. Nelson on the sweeping demographic changes complicating the housing market.
A Serious Critique of Congestion Costs and Induced Vehicle Travel Impacts
Some highway advocates continue to claim that roadway expansions are justified to reduce traffic congestion. That's not what the research shows. It's time to stop obsessing over congestion and instead strive for efficient accessibility.
Tolling All Lanes
Bay Area transportation planners are studying a radical idea to reduce traffic congestion and fund driving alternatives: tolling all lanes on a freeway. Even more radical, the plan considers tolling parallel roads.
Federal SMART Grants Awarded for Transportation Safety, Equity Projects
The grant program focuses on the use of technology to improve safety, accessibility, and efficiency in transportation.
Fare Enforcement Upheld by Washington Supreme Court
But using armed police to enforce fare payment is less than ideal in the eyes of the top court in the state of Washington.
City of Greenville
City of Greenville
Resource Assistance for Rural Environments (RARE) AmeriCorps Program
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact: Mobility, Community, Possibility
City of Spearfish
City of Lomita
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.
