Councilmember Koretz looking to parking solutions for residents.
By Sam Catanzaro
Councilmember Paul Koretz, who represents Century City and Westwood, wants to make preferential parking in Los Angeles work better for homeowners and established residents.
“The purpose of establishing Preferential Parking Districts is to make sure that residents have enough street parking in their neighborhoods,” Koretz said in his November newsletter. “Currently, there’s a loophole that allows new multi-unit buildings to use permitted street parking to offset the building’s limited parking space requirements. Unfortunately, this loophole sharply reduces available parking for established neighborhood residents and their guests.”
Koretz, along with Councilmember David Ryu, have directed the Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT), in coordination with the City Attorney, to look into the feasibility of barring certain new developments from Preferential Parking Districts. Specifically, Koretz and Ryu have instructed the LADOT and the City Attorney to look into excluding housing developments that have been given parking reductions by qualifying as Transit Oriented Communities projects and for neighborhoods that are rezoned under Transit Neighborhood Plans as part of a subway construction project. The motion asks LADOT to report back in 45 days.
Currently, all of Century City has permit parking, except for alongside Santa Monica Boulevard Wilshire Boulevard and bits of Thayer Avenue, Westholme Avenue and Holmbly Avenue. Given the active commercial scene that exists in Century City, the prevalence of preferential parking in the area is in line with LADOT’s intended purpose of establishing Preferential Parking Districts, which have been around since 1979.
“The purpose of a preferential parking district (PPD) shall be to limit intrusion of non-residential and/or commuter parking into residential neighborhoods where such parking practices have negatively impacted the residential area; to encourage carpooling and use of transit; and to enhance the quality of life in residential neighborhoods by reducing noise, traffic hazards, and litter,” LADOT said.
For more information about preferential parking in Los Angeles, visit https://data.lacity.org/A-Livable-and-Sustainable-City/LADOT-Preferential-Parking-Districts-PPD-/2ckn-xmjp.
