The City of Delta has been given a new housing target, but now comes the part of determining how parking can be accommodated.
The city recently issued a request for proposals for a consultant to undertake a study of off-street parking utilization in multi-unit residential and mixed-use buildings within Delta, as well as limited on-street parking where deemed necessary, to help inform potential changes to parking requirements for new developments.
“Delta is currently working on a number of initiatives to increase the development of diverse housing across the city. The outcomes of this parking study would be an important input into parking rate adjustments and other potential measures to accelerate the delivery of housing supply,” the request for proposals explains.
The city’s current off-street requirements include, among other things, secondary suites and coach houses providing one space each, townhouses providing two spaces, while duplexes providing two spaces per unit and one additional space for any boarders, and single-detached dwellings providing two spaces one space for a secondary suite or for each boarder.
There are additional accessible parking requirements that apply to visitor parking when there are 10 or more visitor parking spaces.
Along Scott Road, parking requirements are already reduced by 20 per cent for multi-unit residential and mixed-use buildings with three or more units, while other parking reductions are considered on a case-by-case basis through development variance permits.
The city also notes that a 2018 Regional Parking Study led by TransLink and Metro Vancouver included one strata apartment building in North Delta, the Delta Rise located on Scott Road, but there have not been any other recent studies.
The data collection is to include on-street parking within a 200-metre walking radius on surrounding each building to account for situations where on-street parking is more convenient or is used to accommodate overflow.
The city notes the study is the first phase of what may be a multi-phased project.
The City of Delta recently received its provincially-mandated growth target from the Ministry of Housing detailing the community’s need for 3,607 units over five years.
The province has also provided a guideline to encourage a mix of studios and bedroom units for rental and ownership, with rentals including market, below-market and on-site support options.
