Bill > AB710

This bill, known as the Infill Development and Sustainable Community Act of 2011, aims to reduce development costs and encourage more housing by limiting excessive parking requirements for new construction in areas with good public transportation access. Specifically, in "transit intensive areas" – defined as areas within a half-mile of a major transit stop or a quarter-mile of a high-quality transit corridor with frequent bus service – cities and counties can no longer mandate more than one parking space per thousand square feet of nonresidential space and one parking space per residential unit for new projects. This change is intended to address the high cost of parking, which can significantly increase development expenses and make infill projects financially unfeasible, thereby hindering economic development and the creation of walkable, bikeable neighborhoods. The bill also allows local governments to require higher parking minimums only if they can prove, through a recent study, that existing public parking within a quarter-mile of a project is over 85% occupied, and it includes exceptions for projects that would displace affordable housing or are located in specific areas with adopted plans that already set lower parking requirements.