We have a parking problem in Vineyard.  There are not enough places for everyone to park in many neighborhoods and apartment complexes of the city.

To understand possible solutions I think it helps to understand how we got into this mess.

When developers first proposed the homes, townhomes, condos and apartments that have become our neighborhoods, they proposed single family units—that is housing units that one family would occupy.  The families they targeted were composed of one or two adults and maybe one or more children, and perhaps a dog or a cat. A key feature of these families was they only owned one or two vehicles. The garages, driveways, parking stalls, and on-street parking that were a part of their plan would easily accommodate two cars per household with room for people who came to visit.

But that is where the plan broke down.  

The developers didn’t just sell to families.  They sold to whomever walked in with the proper financing. (Which, by the way, is what each of us did, and Utah fair housing laws require them to continue doing so.) 

That included investors that would turn around and lease out their single unit to four, five, six, or more college students or single young professionals—each with their own car.

That included multi-generational families composed of more than two adults—also each with their own car.

That included those who would use their garages as storage units, taking away one of those precious planned parking spaces.

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That included homeowners who would build an apartment in their basement to rent to more people, each with their own car. 

As you can see, the cars added up.  Pretty soon cars were spilling out of driveways, parking lots, alleys, into open fields, thoroughfares and anywhere else space could be found. 

None of this was in the sale pitch from the developers when they sought approval and permits from the city to proceed with their plans.  

But it should have been.

They knew better.  Shame on them.

But that isn’t the end of the story. 

The city took action. The City Council passed ordinances that were written and publicly debated by the Planning Commission to raise the minimum number of parking spaces required for each apartment, condo, townhouse, and housing development.  Houses and townhomes are now required to have 4 parking places per unit. Apartments and condos are required to have about 1 space per bedroom. Now, any new development will require contractors to include more parking in their plans.

And that is good.  But not good enough.  

Given how close we are to Utah Valley University, and the fact that the university has purchased a large tract of land in Vineyard to expand into, our problem with parking is far from over.  We can expect more homes, apartments, condos and townhouses over time to be rented to multiple university students—and their cars.  

We need to plan for that now.  

We need to increase the minimum number of parking spaces required for each housing unit to accommodate this kind of post-development growth.  But we need to do it in a few different ways.

As it turns out, there is a Utah State law (10-9a-505.5) that allows a city to create an ordinance that limits the number of unrelated adults living in a single housing unit (apartment, condo, home, etc.) to 4—3, if we live in a college town..  This would not affect families, just unrelated single adults. It seems to me that Vineyard needs to enact an ordinance that would do this. I think that would help reduce some of the overcrowding in our parking lots and streets.  

We also need to raise the minimum number of parking spaces to 2 per bedroom for apartments, condos, etc., because that is often how units are rented to single adults—2 people per bedroom.   Of course if we enact a law limiting the number of unrelated adults per unit, we could cap this requirement at 4 so we’re not overbuilding parking spaces.  

Another thing we need to do is stop counting garages as parking spaces.  Many people use their garages for storage or work areas, not parking. Counting garages as parking spaces essentially takes away at least one parking space from the 4 required for each unit.  And the city currently counts each garage space and the driveway in front of it as separate spaces. If both are to be used, you have to move the car in the driveway to allow the car in the garage to get out.  This is not practical either.  

Then there is the matter of when people create apartments in their basements.  The required parking for these needs to be raised too.

All these things needs to be fixed.

But as I’m sure you’ve noticed, that does not address the current shortages in neighborhoods that are already built or which already have permits to be built.  

That is going to be a tougher problem. 

For the most part, the land is already developed.  

Homes have been built.  

Apartment parking lots already occupy any remaining land in the complex.  

There is nowhere else we could park.

In some places green space has been paved over to create more parking. But even that cannot solve the entire problem.  

People need green space too.  

Kids need it. 

Dogs need it.  

It is one of those things that makes where we live calming, enjoyable, peaceful.  

And even if we did pave it all over, it likely would not be enough to provide parking for everyone. 

Here the solution is two-fold:  

1. We work with land owners to add parking where we can without destroying the overall ambience of the housing complex or neighborhood. 
2. We enforce the Utah State law limiting occupancy of a single residence to no more than 4 unrelated adults.  With fewer people, there should be fewer cars.  

Together, these initiatives should allow for more parking while decreasing the overall need for as much parking.

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It won’t be an overnight fix.  It will be inconvenient for some.  But it will reduce the parking problem over time.

If elected, I will work with the Planning Commission, Mayor, City Council and city staff to create an ordinance to limit the number of unrelated adults per unit to 4.  

I will also work with the Planning Commission, Mayor, City Council and City Attorney to craft a city ordinance that will hold landlords responsible for renting illegally to more than 4 unrelated adults in a unit. 

I will work with the Mayor, City Council and city staff to create educational materials that can be distributed through as many channels as possible to as many Vineyard residents and landlords as possible, explaining the law about the occupancy limitation. That will include working with the various Home Owner Associations (HOAs) throughout the city to disseminate, and where appropriate, enforce the limitation.  

I will work with the Planning Commission, Mayor, and City Council to establish an ordinance to raise the number of parking spaces to 2 per bedroom for apartments and at least 4 across the board for other units.  That includes not allowing garages and the driveway immediately in front of them to be counted as individual spaces.