The City of Ottawa (Canada) has produced an animated video to engage the public as it goes about reviewing its minimum parking standards, some of which date back to the 1960s.
The City of Ottawa, Canada recently embarked on a review of the minimum parking requirements in its Zoning By-law. Despite some piecemeal and localized updates over the years, the parking minima for the urban area had not seen a comprehensive review in decades; in some cases, the rules remain unchanged from when they were adopted in 1964.
Recognizing that zoning is a challenging (not to mention controversial) topic, City staff produced a short animated video to engage the public and to help explain the rationale behind the review. The video focuses on how minimum parking requirements are directly at odds with widely-supported planning goals such as affordable housing, supporting small business, promoting quality urban design and encouraging active transportation modes.
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