Sept. 21--The City Council Zoning Committee on Monday endorsed a new ordinance that would allow more developers to construct buildings with fewer parking spaces.
Approval came after Mayor Rahm Emanuel's administration altered the measure to give aldermen a say on whether the projects ultimately get approved. In the original version, City Hall bureaucrats would have made the decisions, but aldermen requested a change.
The ordinance would allow developers to reduce by half the number of required off-street parking spaces up to two city blocks away from a train station, instead of the current single block. The distance would extend up to four blocks, instead of two, from so-called pedestrian-designated streets with high concentrations of retail stores.
And developers would be allowed to eliminate off-street spaces altogether if they provide a combination of at least one bicycle parking space or car-share option on site. Buildings with no parking spaces would have to be approved by the Zoning Board of Appeals.
hdardick@tribpub.com
