How Parking Minimums Beget Ugly Urban Environments

"Cars have shaped much of the North American West, including Cascadia, where drive-through restaurants, shopping centers, highway strip malls, and single-family neighborhoods miles from commercial services dominate much of the urban and suburban landscape," observes Nelson. "Less obvious to the casual observer is the impact that parking regulations have had on architectural forms."

"This photo essay looks at some of the ugly architecture in Cascadia that has resulted from parking minimums. Many of the photos were sent in by readers who responded to our request for examples from their communities."

What follows is a lengthy look at the ugly architecture found in Cascadia’s cities and towns, from "ubiquitous seas of suburban parking" to the “dingbat buildings” common throughout the West Coast.