Small-scale interventions can lead the way to major parking reforms.

Is your community ready for Parking Season?
For over a decade, urban activists around the world have celebrated Park(ing) Day on September 20, marking a day when urbanists demonstrate new uses for parking spots and take the opportunity to propose more effective parking policies.
As Carlee Alm-LaBar explains in a piece for Strong Towns, “One powerful way for cities to increase their resilience and productivity is to abolish parking minimums. For local heroes, embracing this challenge often involves taking small steps before reaching the final goal.” This year more than ever, the movement toward parking reform is growing in small and big cities alike.
Alm-LaBar uses an example from Lafayette, Louisiana to illustrate how temporary, low-cost installations can lead to permanent change. “The city worked with a nonprofit organization — ReCover Acadiana (now Civicside) — to host Park(ing) Day in 2017. That first year, it had 16 temporary installations in Downtown Lafayette. They were works of architecture, museum-inspired installations, a temporary fountain and a simple installation that foreshadowed enjoying a dining experience outdoors.” Less than a year later, the city began permitting parklets and outdoor dining spaces in former parking spots.
FULL STORY: How To Use Parking Season To Make Your Community Stronger

Americans May Be Stuck — But Why?
Americans are moving a lot less than they once did, and that is a problem. While Yoni Applebaum, in his highly-publicized article Stuck, gets the reasons badly wrong, it's still important to ask: why are we moving so much less than before?

Study: Maui’s Plan to Convert Vacation Rentals to Long-Term Housing Could Cause Nearly $1 Billion Economic Loss
The plan would reduce visitor accommodation by 25,% resulting in 1,900 jobs lost.

Using Old Oil and Gas Wells for Green Energy Storage
Penn State researchers have found that repurposing abandoned oil and gas wells for geothermal-assisted compressed-air energy storage can boost efficiency, reduce environmental risks, and support clean energy and job transitions.

San Diego Swaps Parking Lane for Kid-Friendly Mini Park
The block-long greenway will feature interactive play equipment and landscaping.

Tracking the Invisible: Methane Leaks From LA’s Neighborhood Oil Sites
Environmental advocates are using infrared technology to monitor and document methane leaks from neighborhood oil sites, filling regulatory gaps and pushing for stronger protections to safeguard community health and the climate.

Montana Bill Promotes Parking Reform
A bill before the Montana state senate would bar cities from requiring more than one parking spot per new housing unit.
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