Taylor Seely
Arizona Republic
Phoenix plans to sharply reduce the minimum number of parking spaces it requires apartment developers to build in an effort to improve housing affordability and the environment. The most significant changes would apply to apartments in downtown and midtown near light rail.
Residents, who are among the first to weigh in on the policy, by and large oppose the change. But their opposition is likely not a barometer for the ultimate decision-makers: Phoenix City Council.
For a decade, the council has sought to create walkable communities that rely more heavily on public transit. In 2015, it passed a law to regulate development in five distinct areas around the light rail to be more pedestrian friendly. This new law would redouble that effort, paving the way for creating communities with few cars, or in some cases, none at all.
