Longmont Commissioned Study Wins American Planning Association Merit Award
When a CU-Denver Master’s degree student presented his findings on Longmont’s multifamily parking requirements, it inspired Longmont planners to propose changes to its parking policies. The graduate project was so well-received that it caught the attention of the planning community and earned the study a 2022 Merit Award from the American Planning Association (APA) Colorado Chapter.
“The study confirmed the City’s speculations that the City’s multifamily parking requirement is too onerous,” Longmont Transportation Planner Ben Ortiz said. “The City will propose code changes that should contribute to reaching some larger City goals such as providing more affordable housing and reducing the City’s carbon footprint.”
The City of Longmont commissioned this study in the spring of 2021 in collaboration with the University of Colorado’s Master of Urban Planning (MURP) Capstone program. Based on the results, the City of Longmont is proposing to replace minimum parking requirements with parking maximums at multifamily housing projects in the Main Street corridor which should lower the overall cost of development while encouraging more environmentally sensitive transportation modes.
“The findings in this plan will advance many of the goals and strategies defined in the Envision Longmont Multimodal and Comprehensive Plan,” Assistant City Manager Joni Marsh said. “We are grateful for this recognition from APA.”
APA Chapter Awards recognize outstanding projects, plans and people of the planning profession. Planning projects are honored on the basis of their innovation, ability to provide transferable lessons to other Colorado communities, excellent quality, promotion of community progress and the public good, effectiveness of implementation, and other unique factors that make these projects exemplary
The study, titled Multifamily Housing Parking Optimization Study: An Evaluation of Parking Requirements for Multifamily Housing in Longmont, Colorado, can be read in full at https://indd.adobe.com/view/b770102f-f58b-4670-a822-3b5025d57ae8. A video summary can be seen at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKebWGw5QaU.
About Longmont, Colorado
Longmont, Colorado, is a 29-square-mile city with more than 300 days of sunshine and a spectacular vista of the Rocky Mountains. With a population of nearly 100,000, Longmont sits at an elevation of 4,979 feet above sea level. With more than 1,800 acres of parks and open space, a robust craft beverage scene, thriving art culture, fresh dining opportunities, and a Main Street teeming with new energy, Longmont is perfect for everyone from young families to those young at heart. Longmont is also home to several high-tech companies and a nationally recognized school district. Longmont is located in Boulder County conveniently situated 37 miles from Denver, 16 miles from Boulder and 30 miles from Rocky Mountain National Park.
