Garage Proposal for UP
If you’re planning to build a new home in UP, you may want to keep a close eye on a proposal before the City Council that would require new construction to have more enclosed garage parking. The idea is to take parked cars off crowded UP streets, and it may mean homes in the 4,000 to 8,000 square feet range would be required to have three off-street, enclosed parking spaces, and over 8k would require four. The council will continue to discuss the proposal in closed meetings, and a vote is expected next month.
Update: This in from Steve Mace: “A committee comprised of local builders and residents is discussing a number of potential building standards including that one. The group has opted to hold their discussions in private. That is well within their rights. Let’s not give those who read the blog the impression that Council is determining policy behind closed doors.”
Duly noted.
We have a 2 car garage but don’t park in it because we use it as storage. In fact, most of my neighbors and friends do the same. I’m not sure building more garage spaces will result in less on-street parking.
What will happen, though, is property value will decline, esp. for the 50 foot lots. I have a few friends that are currently talking to builders about selling their lots but those talks have been put on hold until this issue is resolved. It is impossible to get a 3 car garage on a 50 foot lot and builders can not pay current prices if they are limited to building a 4,000sf home. So, if this passes and you own a 50 foot lot that might someday be sold as lot, you might be kissing your property value good-bye. You can write your Thank You note to the UP City Council.