Item 8 — Parking Requirement Changes

Understanding what changed, why it happened, and what both sides say about it

What Happened

Bylaw 21P2024 replaced subsection 546 of the Land Use Bylaw in its entirety. Subsection 546 governs the minimum number of motor vehicle parking stalls required for residential development across Calgary.

The old system had a single rate for R-CG development. The new system creates a three-tier structure that applies differently depending on where in the city a property is located.

What Did the Old Rules Require?

The Old Rate

The old subsection 546 required a minimum of 0.5 motor vehicle parking stalls per unit or suite in the R-CG district, calculated across all units and secondary suites on a property.

What That Meant in Practice

For a rowhouse development with 8 units the minimum parking requirement under the old rules was:

• 8 units x 0.5 stalls = 4 parking stalls required

What Do the New Rules Require?

The Three-Tier System

The new subsection 546 creates three different minimum parking rates depending on location:

Tier 1 — General Rate

• Applies to most of Calgary

• Minimum of 1.0 parking stall per unit or suite

• Higher than the old R-CG rate of 0.5

Tier 2 — Reduced Rate Communities

• Applies to a specific list of established communities named in the bylaw

• Minimum of 0.5 parking stalls per unit or suite

• The same as the old R-CG rate

Tier 3 — Transit Proximity Rate

• Applies to any development within 600 metres of an existing LRT platform or BRT stop

• Minimum of 0.5 parking stalls per unit or suite

• Regardless of which community the property is in

Which Calgary Communities Are on the Reduced Rate List?

The bylaw names a long list of established communities that qualify for the reduced 0.5 rate. These include among others:

• Varsity

• Brentwood

• Lakeview

• Charleswood

• Capitol Hill

• Cambrian Heights

• Dalhousie

• Collingwood

• Huntington Hills

• Thorncliffe

• Banff Trail

• Altadore

• Killarney/Glengarry

• Mount Pleasant

• Rosedale

The full list contains over 100 communities and is published in Table 2.1 of the bylaw.

What This Means in Practice

For a rowhouse development with 8 units in a community on the reduced rate list or within 600 metres of an LRT station the minimum parking requirement is:

• 8 units x 0.5 stalls = 4 parking stalls required

For the same development in a community not on the reduced rate list and not near transit:

• 8 units x 1.0 stalls = 8 parking stalls required

Why Did the City Make These Changes?

Reducing Car Dependency Near Transit

The City's primary argument for reduced parking requirements near transit is that residents who live close to LRT stations and BRT stops are more likely to use transit and less likely to own or depend on a car. Requiring large numbers of parking stalls in those locations adds cost to development, consumes land that could be used for housing or landscaping, and incentivises car ownership in areas where the City is trying to reduce it.

Responding to Different Contexts

The three-tier system attempts to recognise that parking needs vary across the city. Areas with good transit access and walkable amenities genuinely have lower car ownership rates than areas without those characteristics. A single city-wide parking rate does not reflect those differences.

Reducing the Cost of Housing

Parking stalls are expensive to build. Underground parking can cost between $30,000 and $60,000 per stall. Surface parking consumes land. Reducing parking requirements in appropriate locations reduces the cost of building housing which can in theory contribute to lower housing prices and rents.

Alignment With Broader Transportation Policy

The City of Calgary has stated goals around increasing transit ridership, reducing car dependency, and building more walkable and bikeable communities. Reducing parking minimums near transit aligns residential development standards with those transportation policy goals.

What Are the Concerns About This Change?

Parking Pressure on Residential Streets

The most immediate concern raised by residents is that reducing parking requirements for multi-unit developments shifts parking demand onto surrounding residential streets:

• A development with 8 units and only 4 required parking stalls leaves 4 households without guaranteed off-street parking

• Those households own vehicles they park somewhere

• In an established neighbourhood that somewhere is typically the street in front of neighbouring houses

• The cumulative effect of multiple such developments on a single street can be significant

The Mismatch Between Units and Stalls

Critics argue that the 0.5 stalls per unit rate does not reflect the reality of car ownership in Calgary:

• Calgary is a car-dependent city with limited transit coverage outside of the core and major corridors

• Even in communities near LRT stations many households own one or more vehicles

• A rate of 0.5 stalls per unit assumes that half of all households in those communities do not own a car

• Critics argue that assumption is not supported by actual car ownership data in most affected communities

The Combination With Expanded Density

The parking changes need to be understood alongside the density changes made by the rest of Bylaw 21P2024:

• More units are now possible on each lot

• Fewer parking stalls are required per unit

• The combination means significantly more households and significantly less off-street parking on the same streets

• Critics argue this combination was not adequately modelled for its cumulative impact on residential street parking

Infrastructure Was Not Designed for This Density

Established Calgary neighbourhoods were designed and built around assumptions of one or two vehicles per household with off-street parking provided on each lot:

• Residential streets in those neighbourhoods have a finite amount of on-street parking capacity

• That capacity was not designed to absorb the overflow from multi-unit developments with reduced parking requirements

• Critics argue the City has not committed to upgrading street infrastructure in affected neighbourhoods to manage the additional parking demand

The Reduced Rate List Is Not Consistently Applied

Some residents and planning observers have questioned how the list of communities qualifying for the reduced rate was determined:

• The criteria for inclusion are not clearly explained in the bylaw

• Some communities on the list have limited transit access

• Some communities not on the list are in similar situations to those that are

• Critics argue the list appears somewhat arbitrary and that affected residents had limited input into its composition

What Does This Mean in Practical Terms?

For Homeowners in Communities on the Reduced Rate List

• New multi-unit developments in your neighbourhood are only required to provide 0.5 parking stalls per unit

• The gap between required stalls and likely vehicle ownership will be absorbed by on-street parking

• The cumulative effect of multiple developments will increase pressure on street parking over time

For Homeowners Near LRT Stations

• Any development within 600 metres of an LRT platform qualifies for the 0.5 rate regardless of which community it is in

• This applies even if the community is not on the reduced rate list

• Residents within that 600 metre radius will experience the same parking pressure as those in reduced rate communities

For Developers

• Reduced parking requirements lower the cost of development in affected communities and transit corridors

• Less land needs to be dedicated to parking which increases the buildable area of a site

• The financial case for higher density development in those locations is stronger under the new rules

For Renters

• Lower development costs resulting from reduced parking requirements can in theory be passed on as lower rents

• Renters who do not own cars benefit from not paying for parking infrastructure they do not need

• Renters who do own cars in developments with limited parking may face challenges finding parking near their homes

Key Facts

• Section of the bylaw replaced: Subsection 546 of Land Use Bylaw 1P2007

• Old parking rate for R-CG: 0.5 stalls per unit or suite

• New general rate: 1.0 stalls per unit or suite

• New reduced rate for listed communities: 0.5 stalls per unit or suite

• New transit proximity rate: 0.5 stalls per unit or suite within 600 metres of LRT or BRT

• Notable communities on the reduced rate list: Varsity, Brentwood, Lakeview, Charleswood, Capitol Hill, Banff Trail, Dalhousie, and over 100 others

• The City's argument for the change: Reducing car dependency near transit, responding to different contexts across the city, and lowering the cost of housing

• Primary concern among critics: Reduced parking requirements shift parking demand onto residential streets and were not adequately modelled for their cumulative impact alongside the density increases enabled by the rest of the bylaw

Read the full bylaw: calgary.ca

See the related proposal: [Link to Item 8 Proposal — insert once created]

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