By : Subuk Hasnain
Wed, 09/04/2013 - 4:20pm
The City Council’s Zoning Committee passed an ordinance Wednesday aimed at reducing the required parking lot size for certain developments in the city and encouraging the use of public transit.
Sponsored by Mayor Rahm Emanuel, the ordinance gives developers the option to request a reduction of the number of spaces required for certain residential developments by half if the proposed development is located either within 600 feet of a CTA or Metra rail station entrance. The option is extended to buildings within 1,200 feet of a CTA or Metra rail station entrance in cases where the residential building is located along a pedestrian street or a pedestrian retail street.
Developers of certain non-residential parking lots that are located within the same distances from a CTA or Metra rail station would have the option to request reduction of their parking requirements of 100 percent under the language of the ordinance.
Responding to questions from Alderman Robert Fioretti, Bureau of Planning and Zoning Managing Deputy Director Patricia Scudiero said any developer who requests a reduction in the parking requirement of over 50 percent must provide notice to the local alderman. The reduction would not be approved until at least 10 days after the date of notice.
Scudiero also said the proposed changes would have to go through the City Council’s Zoning Committee.
This article was originally published on the Daily Whale website in 2013.