Parking Requirements & Formulas

[Diane Sterling]

Hello,

I am a City Planner working with an office building owner to establish our first coworking space.  I want to make sure that our zoning ordinance permits the use and the regulations don't choke out the ability for this model to expand across the city.  Right now, our office parking requirement is 1 space per 300 square feet of gross floor area.  In our city, we don't have a transit service, so everyone drives.  But I know that the spaces typically won't be occupied by all members at one time.  As a city, we have to consider the impact if the use changes in the future to ensure there is adequate parking developed, but I also want to make sure that if the building is sharing parking that my standards reflect some reality.  Can you all chime in on how your city manages this formula for coworking space?

Thanks!

Diane

[Jerome Chang]

Hi. I’m an architect and quite familiar with these zoning/code issues.

I would say typical coworking spaces are now <100 sf/person, and brands like WeWork are ~50 sf/person.

While some may criticize the push toward greater densities, I would say at least for us, it’s about providing a variety of workspaces that include higher density areas.

I think regions without transit services will have to start adopting credits for those who advocate ride sharing, or HOV, or similar.

But in general, 1:1 seat to parking will never be sustainable because surface parking area will outstrip available land.

In LA, we’ve had to push rail transit to fruition b/c we are still going through our growing pains to become a real city. We’re otherwise just a very mature suburbia.

JEROME CHANG

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