PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Advocates are calling on Providence leaders to remove minimum parking requirements in the city, saying more space not designated for cars could help the housing crisis.
The Providence Streets Coalition published an open letter last week calling on members of the Providence City Council Ordinances Committee to amend Mayor Brett Smiley’s proposed draft comprehensive plan , which was approved by the City Plan Commission on June 18.
“We appreciate that the current draft calls for the broad reduction of parking requirements, however with this document, we have the opportunity to meet the moment and follow the lead of dozens of peer cities by eliminating the requirement entirely,” the group wrote in the letter.
The coalition argued that be removing minimum requirements — which are typically assigned to a building project or existing structure based on size and units — could be one way to address the housing crisis.
“The housing crisis is an urgent issue that needs to be tackled from every possible angle, and there is one solution that is free, instant, and extremely effective: eliminating parking minimums for all uses citywide,” the group wrote.