How long will it take for Portland residents to wake up and realize they were sold a bill of goods by the Portland City Council in the form of ReCode? There now are no off-street parking requirements for new residential development in our city. The majority of renters living on the Portland peninsula have cars but no off-street parking and can’t afford the cost of garage parking.

The Portland Planning Department envisions a car-free downtown by making it harder for current residents to find “free” on-street parking. City staff believe people will choose not to have cars and use other means of transportation. But many of those with cars commute off the peninsula to their jobs. Many leave the city regularly to recreate in Maine’s great outdoors. And currently there are no transportation options that will easily allow that.

Parking issues are going to get bad real fast. The Portland Planning Board approved a proposal to build a 327-unit apartment building at 165 Washington Ave., with only 11 parking spaces. Also, Bayside residential development is being built on existing parking lots, displacing the commuters and shoppers who currently park there. And then there’s the “Redesign Franklin” promoters. They now claim that by realigning the traffic lanes enough land with be reclaimed to build up to 1,000 residential units — but without any off-street parking.

Jay York
Portland