With news out of Michigan that an appeals court has ruled chalking tires unconstitutional, some cities may be forced to innovate how they regulate parking. While it’s too early to say exactly how the ruling will shake out, there’s no doubt that if it holds, we’ll feel it. It’s because in North Dakota, parking meters are already illegal.
Here in Minot where parking is a sore spot and generates no small amount of community conversation. My question is this: do you think we’ve been burned enough to take a hard look at the larger parking system we’ve inherited? In other words, if you’re mad about the parking garages, are you also mad about a system that led us to believe they were the best decision?
If you think a system review and analysis of how we got our parking garages is appropriate, start by which this primer on the American parking phenomenon. Maybe Minot isn’t alone in dealing with parking challenges. And maybe eight parking spots for every car isn’t the best way to use land.
And do you suppose parking has anything to do with why downtown land is a consistently high performer on a value-per-acre basis? Maybe forcing land into parking isn’t the best way to hope for lower property taxes.
There were so many proposed parking garages over the last 15 years or so and not given a thought. I know of one Trinity pulled out of and another one I have a copy of.Why this one was any different is beyond me. It must of had a shinier ribbon, package etc on it to go through with. But then again, it could have been the players who at the time were involved and no longer here who made it worthwhile. Then again planning is hard and hindsight after the fact, especially when it seems nobody reads history, open minutes etc on projects. It’s not just this project, it’s many others over the years including current ones. Need better research.