01-11-2021 FINAL Agenda Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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SUBSTITUTE BILL NO. 60-20 ORDINANCE NO. _______ AN ORDINANCE OF THE COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SOUTH BEND, INDIANA, AMENDING CHAPTER 21 OF THE SOUTH BEND MUNICIPAL CODE TO REVISE PARKING AND ACCESS ST AND ARDS ST A TEMENT OF PURPOSE AND INTENT For more than fifty years, the South Bend zoning ordinance has required minimum levels of off-street parking to be provided for nearly all locations and uses. However, the ordinance's calculation ofrequired off-street parking has proved unreliable and has led to an oversupply of parking areas in the city. On oversupply of off-street parking lots has several negative consequences. Among them, excessive off-street parking supports an auto-oriented form of development, with its attendant negative effects on the environment and the safety of people traveling on foot or bicycle. Physical separation of uses by parking lots harms urban character and leads to less vibrant neighborhoods. The inability to provide the required off-street parking handicaps the ability to re-use existing buildings for another purpose, thus hampering the City's economic resiliency and discouraging investment in neighborhoods. Unneeded off-street parking is a low-value use ofland, limiting the community's tax base potential. Finally, the high cost of developing off-street parking is passed along to consumers in higher prices for housing and for goods and services. Eliminating minimum off-street parking requirements supports a market-based approach to off-street parking that will supply only the needed number of spaces, including by encouraging parking to be shared among neighboring properties. Recognizing the importance of this approach, the City of South Bend has taken steps in recent years toward eliminating minimum off-street parking requirements. In 2017, minimum off-street parking requirements were eliminated from the city's traditional business districts, matching the longstanding exemption for downtown. In 2018, the required parking counts for specified uses were reduced or eliminated, and credits toward the off-street parking requirement were made available through several means. With the revised zoning ordinance that took effect on January 1, 2020, six of the City's twelve zoning districts have no minimum parking requirements. Given the City's positive experience in eliminating those regulations, off-street parking minimums should be removed from the remaining six zoning districts where it is required. NOW, THEREFORE, be it ordained by the Common Council of the City of South Bend, Indiana, as follows: