Dallas council approves parking reform to boost local business and walkability
After years of debate, the Dallas City Council has approved sweeping changes to the city's parking regulations, aiming to modernize outdated rules and support small businesses and walkable neighborhoods.
The reforms, passed in a 14-1 vote Wednesday night, eliminate parking requirements in several key areas, including downtown, near transit stations, historic landmarks, offices, and retail spaces. Small bars and restaurants under 2,500 square feet are also now exempt from minimum parking requirements.
Elmwood café welcomes new rules
In Oak Cliff's Elmwood neighborhood, Russell Tibbits, co-owner of Little Joy Coffee Shop, welcomed the change.
"Parking reform allows us and our small business neighbors to continue to build a thriving community," Tibbits said. "With the parking reform, we can shift our focus away from restrictive, allocated parking and pour into local small businesses that help the community flourish."
He said their expansion plans had been stalled by parking mandates that didn't reflect how their customers get there.
"I would say the majority of our customers are here in Elmwood," Tibbits said. "And a lot of them are able to walk here, which is just great."
Simplified parking for homes
The new rules also revise parking requirements for housing developments. Instead of basing requirements on the number of bedrooms, the city will now require one parking space per dwelling unit for large complexes. Smaller developments with fewer than 20 units will have no minimum parking requirements.
"One of the things that we want to do is be a place where kids can enjoy themselves, but parents can enjoy themselves as well," Tibbits said.
Support grows
Councilmember Chad West of District 1 supported the reforms, calling them a step in the right direction.
"This isn't an overly urbanistic policy," West said. "This is barely incremental compared to what other cities are doing. But at least it's taking us in the right direction from the 1960s, where the parking code still rules in most of our city."
However, not all council members were on board.
Not all in agreement
District 12's Cara Mendelsohn expressed skepticism, referencing a well-known commercial to make her point.
"There is an example about NYC, and I don't think most of us have forgotten that Pace Picante commercial," she said. "I don't want to be New York City, or else I'd live there."
The new rules apply only to private, off-street parking, and the changes do not include on-street parking and loading.
The reforms are expected to ease development restrictions, encourage walkability, and better reflect the transportation habits of Dallas residents.
