In designing and building apartment and condominium projects, parking determines everything from site suitability to the building’s footprint to revenue optimization.
Throughout my career, I’ve had to turn down sites from a development perspective because we couldn’t make the parking work. Parking often dictates building layouts and sometimes even the number of units we can put into the building. For those of us in the multifamily sector, we want to create spaces for people to live, play, and grow, not just projects centered around giving people a place to store their cars.
Over the years, my colleagues and I at The Bradley Projects have developed strategies for site evaluation and alternative methods for maximizing parking and overall return on investment. The following are strategies for parking that we have found serve the site, the residents, and the owner/developer.
KNOWLEDGE AND THOROUGHNESS: STILL THE KEY FACTORS IN SITE ASSESSMENTS
First, there is no “thinking around” a site’s topography related to parking design strategies. As developers ourselves, we occasionally have to pass on a site solely because it doesn’t allow for optimal parking.
Take the matter of subterranean conditions, which can vary significantly across the U.S. In coastal areas, underground parking becomes difficult due to soil conditions and drainage, whereas in Nashville, where we are based, everything is on bedrock. That makes excavation time-consuming and expensive and carries certain liabilities due to the need for explosives to blast the rock. So it is important to identify the unique site-specific conditions before moving on to the rest of the site analysis.
STARTING POINTS FOR EVALUATING PARKING
We typically begin by looking at the geometries of the site, any irregularities, possible ingress and egress points, traffic flow and patterns, and assorted other unique features—all of which is part of our contextual analysis. We study layouts, which are a factor of dimensions, rhythms, and building codes.
Over the years, we have assembled a knowledge base of parking analyses from every project we’ve ever done, based on our work with numerous traffic engineers and parking consultants. Using this knowledge base we can be very efficient in evaluating a site. Specialized software technology can sometimes be helpful, but we often still rely on conventional evaluation methods due to cost and budget to get the job done.
We’ve also found that technology doesn’t quite go that last step to optimize the layout. We have been experimenting with software from several new tech companies, beta testing their products that promise to use in-depth algorithms to essentially compute the most efficient layout from the onset of the study.
We have found that, while these tools can produce results very quickly, the results have been much the same as what we would have developed without the program. We’ve also found the algorithm-based software can lay out the spaces mathematically but has not yet been able to finesse the geometries the way the human brain can. There are just times where a motorcycle space or two can fill in a strange area, or you can move trash collection somewhere else, or a transformer to another location—all solutions that surface through human collaboration, brainstorming, and experience.
THREE APPROACHES TO PARKING IN APARTMENT AND CONDOMINIUM PROJECTS
Once we have completed an initial analysis, we’re ready to consider what building typology makes sense. Usually, that falls into three categories: tuck under, cantilever, and over excavation.
Tuck under is usually the least expensive method for tight areas but only works well off alley-loaded sites. For our Fairfax Flats project, we managed to fit parking for 19 units into a tiny urban infill lot with this tactic.
![Fairfax Flats, Nashville - tuck under parking](/sites/default/files/inline-images/2%20Bradley%20Projects%20-%20Fairfax%20Flats%20Nashville.jpg)
In neighborhood-based urban areas with alley-loaded access, the tuck under approach can work well if the site allows the structure to address the main street and neighborhood while hiding and directing the cars to the alley.
Cantilever. In multifamily projects, cantilevers can break up the typical “box” multifamily development that is running rampant in so many cities and give architects a chance for a more progressive statement. They also provide an ideal way to work covered parking into the project. While more expensive than a tuck under, the cantilever approach can provide more parking spaces.
![Alina apartment complex, Nashville with cantilever parking](/sites/default/files/inline-images/3%20Alina%20Nashville.jpg)
A site with an alley is still preferable for the cantilever technique, although, in tight spatial scenarios, we’ve done this off of a busy city street.
Over excavation is usually the most expensive option. In many urban areas this approach allows parking to be pushed to the extreme edges of the property, then covered by the building or by setback/outdoor space, depending on the zoning requirements.
![Illume Nashville, The Bradley Projects - over excavation parking](/sites/default/files/inline-images/4%20Illume%20Nashville%20%20-%20Ford%20Photographs%20-%20BPIjpg.jpg)
Over excavation is expensive due to the excavation costs, shoring requirements at property lines, and the extra effort needed to build space underground. This approach lends itself to creating plaza-like spaces over the concrete “lid” of the parking area.
Some more enlightened cities have begun to incentivize developers to create this type of ground-level outdoor space to integrate new multifamily communities into the urban fabric and pedestrian realm. Such spaces also can increase retail or residential rents if they are seen as marketable. But it’s still a question of thoughtful and intentional design.
Over excavation can work just about anywhere there is enough room to get a car ramp down and parking allocated.
CHOOSING THE RIGHT PARKING STYLE
Ultimately, the cost-effectiveness equation is more complex than dollars in and dollars out. So many of our projects would never have penciled out without pushing hard on efficiencies and getting creative with how we solve for the highest level of efficiency while addressing all of the various types of users and circulation patterns.
Sometimes the cheapest option isn’t the best. I’ve seen the ROI on a multifamily development increase 20-25% just by rethinking how we handle the parking scenario. It was not because the parking solution saved construction dollars, but because it allowed 20-25% more units, or more retail space, or both.
It’s becoming much more critical to think about and be honest about how much parking your project needs. Cities across the map are lowering their parking requirements. People are becoming less car reliant. In the Nashville region, we are seeing an average 25% decrease in required parking in most areas of our urban areas—even down to zero required parking in areas on multimodal corridors. Nashville’s civic leadership is very wisely and progressively pushing much of the parking requirements back on developers and the market to resolve the parking situation instead of adopting an antiquated, one-size-fits-all policy.
THE FUTURE OF PARKING
Despite the reduced reliance on cars, we’re nowhere near a zero parking world, but the trend is undoubtedly moving toward less and less parking, more EV charging areas, and more drop-off/valet areas.
I’m excited to see the possibility of our cities becoming more populated with autonomous vehicles that can be developed for much safer conditions for riders and pedestrians.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jared Bradley, AIA, NCARB, is Founder and President of The Bradley Projects, an architecture, construction, and development company headquartered in Nashville, Tenn.
Related Stories
| Nov 15, 2011
Suffolk Construction breaks ground on the Victor housing development in Boston
Project team to manage construction of $92 million, 377,000 square-foot residential tower.
| Nov 15, 2011
Miller joins Perkins Eastman as regional manager, Middle East and Northern Africa
Miller joins Perkins Eastman with more than 48 years of experience in architecture, design management, and construction administration for planning and infrastructure.
| Nov 14, 2011
303 East 33rd Street building achieves LEED-NC
The 165,000 sf 12-story residential building is the first green development to be LEED certified in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan.
| Oct 17, 2011
Austin's newest urban apartment complex under construction
Complex sits on a four-acre waterfront site along Lady Bird Lake with spectacular city and lake views, and is slated to open spring 2013.
| Oct 12, 2011
FMI’s Construction Outlook: Third Quarter 2011 Report
Construction Market Forecast: The general economy is seeing mixed signs.
| Oct 6, 2011
GREENBUILD 2011: NEXT Living EcoSuite showcased
Tridel teams up with Cisco and Control4 to unveil the future of green condo living in Canada.
| Sep 29, 2011
Kohler supports 2011 Solar Decathlon competition teams
Modular Architecture > In a quest to create the ultimate ‘green’ house, 20 collegiate teams compete in Washington D.C. Mall.
| Sep 23, 2011
$5M pledge renewed for Habitat for Humanity
The five-year commitment, which will run through 2015, includes $5 million of donated interior and exterior locks and keys for homes built with Habitat for Humanity homeowner partners and volunteers.
| Sep 23, 2011
Under 40 Leadership Summit
Building Design+Construction’s Under 40 Leadership Summit takes place October 26-28, 2011 Hotel at the Monteleone in New Orleans. Discounted hotel rate deadline: October 2, 2011.
| Sep 20, 2011
Jeanne Gang wins MacArthur Fellowship
Jeanne Gang, a 2011 MacArthur Fellowship winner described by the foundation as "an architect challenging the aesthetic and technical possibilities of the art form in a wide range of structures."