PAWTUCKET DOWNTOWN DESIGN PLAN FINAL ... - VHB.com

VISION Concepts
HOW DO I STOP IN DOWNTOWN PAWTUCKET
CONCEPT 3 : “P”ARKING
“P”arking goals
Make finding parking easy
Encourage development
Reduce water run-off
“P”arking components
Enforce on-street parking
Add on-street spaces
Create “P” signage at parking lots
Increase pervious surfaces
Add trees
Renovate City Garage
Change parking requirements
Historically, Pawtucket’s downtown street edges were lined with commercial
buildings as it was developed prior to the use of the automobile. Originally,
pedestrian movement was the primary form of getting through the downtown;
then carriages and streetcars became common. Eventually, the downtown
streets were redesigned to accommodate cars, a system that also included
parking lots, wider streets, and larger sidewalk corner radii.
Currently, 25% of all land area in downtown is surface parking. There are
currently 1,730 parking spaces, 10% of which is on street parking, 90% of
which is in parking lots. 70% of all parking spaces are found on private lots;
30% of parking spaces are on public streets, lots or garages. The biggest
users of parking in the core of downtown are City Hall, the Visitors Center
building, the YMCA and the Public Library.
After reviewing recent parking studies completed for the city, the PDDP found
that parking is ample for the current and anticipated uses in the near future.
The parking system, however, does not work efficiently because lots are
not adequately signed and on street parking limits are not enforced. There
is enough activity by businesses and offices in downtown that employees
generally park in the on street parking locations during daytime hours,
restricting those spots for commercial customers and short-term parking.
Having a system of moving spaces is important to keeping up the flow of
traffic, density of commercial activity and encouraging retail shopping.
The “P”arking project addresses the above concerns by developing a set
of program and physical infrastructure improvements: enforce the two-hour
parking limit for on street parking spots, provide standard “P” signage for
public lots that clarifies how it can be used, fund City garage renovations to
make it safer and more appealing, increase on street parking spaces through
the turnpike system and roadway diets, and, for the public surface parking that
remains, use more pervious paving and tree edges on public lots to decrease
the heat island effect, water run-off issues, and add density along the sidewalk.
Additionally, the large amount of surface parking is a result of zoning laws that
have required businesses to provide the maximum needed parking for the uses
of their occupancy. As property values have decreased, this has encouraged
the demolition of older buildings for the creation of surface parking to support
the remaining businesses. As well, recent parking studies have recommended
more surface parking be added in anticipation of unrealistic downtown
growth. In some cases, they have recommended removing important historic
structures. This project addresses the abundance of surface parking by
changing the zoning regulations so that there is zero requirement for parking
for commercial uses and limited parking requirements for residential uses in the
downtown area.
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PDDP VISION