America is addicted to parking lots — and it's killing the economy
up as much as 14,000 square miles nationwide, about the same land area as Connecticut and Vermont combined.of land that could be better used in other ways. And in talking with real-estate developers, architects, and city planners, we learned it wasn't only a Google problem. Nearly anyone trying to build anywhere across the country eventually runs into the parking problem.
There are tax burdens as well. Because property taxes are based on not only the value of the land but any improvements made to it, parking lotsless in property taxes than an office building, apartment complex, or store on the same piece of land would. Repurposing parking for business purposes such as retail would increase tax-generating activities, helping fund vital services and create jobs.
In a few fortunate American cities, but more commonly in Europe, you can enjoy a coffee at an outdoor table, attend a lunch meeting, and go shopping all without needing a car. A key to making that happen in more cities is providing transportation to make these locations easily accessible. But our reliance on cars is making that almost impossible to achieve.
Very dense neighborhoods can flourish where mass transit is available. Neighborhoods without access to quality mass transit, though, generally rely on cars. As these neighborhoods are built up, residents bring more and more cars. This results in wider roads and more parking, pushing things farther away from each other, making everything less accessible. There's a huge gap between the ideal density for cars and the ideal density for mass transit.
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