ALP: Car parking mandate

[ozbob]

Sent to all outlets:

20th February 2016

Increased Car Parking? No Thanks!

Greetings,

RAIL Back on Track members are  concerned that new parking dictates announced by Rod Harding are a step backwards, promoting car use over public transport.

Mandating a car park can easily add another $50,000 to the price of an apartment. That's obviously going to have an impact on housing affordability, and encourage people to drive versus taking buses and trains.

We are calling on Rod Harding to exempt any new development from his proposed car parking change that is within 800 m of a train station or a BUZ/CityGlider bus stop.

If people are having issues with cars parking in their street, there are obvious solutions: fix the bus network, issue residential parking permits or charge cars for the privilege to park on the street.

Increased mandatory car parking? No thanks!

Best wishes
Robert

Robert Dow
Administration
admin@backontrack.org
RAIL Back On Track http://backontrack.org

References:

Brisbane council election: Car parks central in seven-point planning pledge
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/brisbane-council-election-car-parks-central-in-sevenpoint-planning-pledge-20160218-gmxw8u.html

City of Ottawa Review of Minimum Parking Standards >

[ozbob]

Brisbanetimes --> Brisbane council election: Property Council slams Labor parking plan

Additional off-street car parks will be mandated in new unit developments if Labor wins the 2016 Brisbane City Council election.

The Property Council of Australia has warned Labor's election pledge to mandate extra car spaces in new developments would drive up the cost of housing in the Queensland capital.

Labor lord mayoral candidate Rod Harding last week announced his administration, if elected, would stick to a seven-point planning guarantee that would compel developers to strictly adhere to the City Plan.

A central plank of that commitment was to increase on-site car parking requirements for new developments across the city.

Labor says suburban streets are increasingly being parked out due to a lack of off-street car parking in new developments. Photo: Darren Pateman

PCA Queensland executive director Chris Mountford said that would have a huge impact on homebuyers' finances.

"Adding a single car park can add $50,000 to the cost of an apartment," he said.

"Considering that approximately 19 per cent of all dwellings in Brisbane are apartments, and across all housing types, almost 50 per cent of dwellings have one or less vehicles, it would seem that this plan could force homebuyers to pay for additional parking spaces they will likely never use.

Labor lord mayoral candidate Rod Harding announcing details of his $1.2 billion light rail proposal on Sunday. Photo: Cameron Atfield

"Where world cities are limiting the number of car parks in residential developments and instead focusing on public transport, this plan proposes to increase our reliance on private vehicle transport thereby further contributing to congestion on our roads.

"Better public transport, not more car parks, is a smarter solution for inner city suburbs."

Mr Mountford said the property industry generated about $34.6 billion in economic activity annually, which accounted for about 12 per cent of Brisbane's gross product.

"With the property industry directly employing 83,859 people in Brisbane – 11.8 per cent of all jobs – Mr Harding needs to be careful that his proposed planning changes are not a risk to local jobs," he said.

Mr Mountford said the cost of housing in Brisbane remained, on average, half that of Sydney.

"Maintaining Brisbane's affordability advantage over southern cities is vital in ensuring our city continues to grow and attract knowledge workers from interstate," he said.

"Any moves that increase the cost of housing, such as additional car parking requirements, extended approval timeframes or long independent design reviews, will erode Brisbane's affordability advantage."

The car parking measures also came under fire from public transport advocate Robert Dow from Rail Back On Track, who described the idea as a "step backwards".

"That's obviously going to have an impact on housing affordability, and encourage people to drive versus taking buses and trains," he said.

"We are calling on Rod Harding to exempt any new development from his proposed car parking change that is within 800 metres of a train station or a BUZ/CityGlider bus stop.

"If people are having issues with cars parking in their street, there are obvious solutions: fix the bus network, issue residential parking permits or charge cars for the privilege to park on the street."

Mr Harding said he would "make no apology for standing up for residents" and that the parking issue needed to be addressed on Brisbane's suburban roads.

"One of the biggest issues raised with me by residents, when talking about planning and development, is the increasing problem of parked-out streets," he said.

"Residents are frustrated to breaking point by that fact that new unit developments right across the suburbs are clogging their streets with parked cars."

Mr Harding said public transport measures, such as suburban road improvements and the $1.2 billion light rail project he unveiled on Sunday, would help address Mr Dow's concerns.

"This integrated plan outlines a comprehensive strategy to fix congestion bottlenecks and get people back on to public transport," he said.

Mr Mountford said, despite their differences, the Property Council would welcome the opportunity to consult with a Harding administration.

"The Property Council also welcomes Labor's desire to engage with the community on what the future of our city will look like, and how the community can influence this outcome," he said.

"At the same time, any consultation with the community must be undertaken at the early stages of the planning process to ensure that there is a clear understanding about when and how development outcomes can be influenced.

"While we understand and respect the right of the community to be involved in the future of their city, we would encourage the Labor Party not to raise expectations that development that occurs in accordance with the City Plan will carry with it the same objection and appeal rights as impact assessable development."