The Central Ballard Residents Association met last Thursday, September 11, to discuss parking changes in Ballard.

SDOT’s Jonathan Williams and Margo Polley addressed parking and recent studies. SDOT has been doing parking studies in Ballard for the last five years, and completed one last May that determined who is parking in Ballard and where.

SDOT has been monitoring parking in Ballard through the Community Access and Parking Program, and has a goal of making parking in the commercial sector of Ballard more predictable for customers and visitors.

At the meeting, SDOT reported that the data shows that parking south of Northwest Market Street is congested after 10:00 a.m. on most days. Furthermore, areas within the core are 90 percent full for more than three hours during the day and completely full at night. Also, the current parking time limits in place are not creating vehicle turnover. Currently, on Ballard Avenue parking is often completely full after 10:00 a.m., and 20 percent of vehicles stay longer than posted time limits.

“There is a lot of demand for parking. We are a growing city and we are not really adding a lot to our street network…In Ballard, parking has become more challenging because there has been a lot of new development. Ballard is a very popular place, and a byproduct of that is an increase in demand for parking,” said Williams.

SDOT has drafted a plan that will add parking spaces to 17th Avenue Northwest and convert 22nd Avenue Northwest between Northwest Market Street and Ballard Avenue into angled parking on the east side. In addition, SDOT will add two to four hour time limits to areas in the Ballard core. They will also add paid parking South of Northwest Market Street where there is the highest demand. The idea is to increase turnover and visitor access. For specific locations visit http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/parking/cp_ballard.htm

“What we see, especially in the commercial areas, is around Market and to the north, you can pretty reliably find a space there but if you get south of market its full after 9:00 a.m. and full until 9:00 p.m., and what that leads to is people getting frustrated and driving around, maybe not looking for pedestrians and making questionable parking decisions…Not being able to find a space leads to people driving around and traffic.”

In addition to the proposed parking changes, SDOT is currently evaluating load zones in Ballard to determine their value for businesses and use.

The draft plan is the result of SDOT talking with local business and property owners. In addition, last week SDOT sent out 5,500 mailer surveys to collect feedback on parking issues and recommendations for the plan draft.

At the Ballard District Council meeting the night before, SDOT presented on the same parking plan, and one resident recommended building parking on 24th Avenue Northwest south of Northwest Market Street. However, development of that area has been earmarked by Seattle Public Utilities in light of a stormwater containment project.

Some Ballard core residents say SDOT caters to business owners and Ballard visitors and that an RPZ should be made in the core. Photo by Shane Harms.

One recommendation Williams discussed was the addition of parking on Shilshole Avenue. Williams said that restaurant workers recommended that change so that they have a place to park during their late hours. Moreover, the addition of the Greenway on 17th Avenue Northwest would add over 20 spaces to the core area.

“We’ve got a lot of good comments and feedback from residents and businesses, and we are taking that all in this month, and we have more meetings next month to process that. We are hoping to have the plan at the end of this year and implement it next year.”

So why change parking now?

SDOT reported that parking regulations in Ballard have not been changed since 2005, and that new development and business has created a high demand and a need for parking turnover.

One resident voiced concern that SDOT is watching out for the best interest of customers and visitors coming to Ballard for a short period, rather than the best interest of residents. Residents of the Curtiss Building on Ballard Avenue said they have a hard time finding parking while doing simple things like buying groceries. One man reported that he has to get up at 4:00 a.m. to move his car that he had to park eight blocks away from his home.

“The parking is bad enough right now, but to make it worse to benefit the business owners is a complete injustice.”

Residents asked to install a restricted parking zone (RPZ) for resident use only, however SDOT said that the criterion for an RPZ is incongruent with the demand of the business core. Buy, they state that if there is enough advocacy from citizens in the area, they would reevaluate enacting an RPZ.

“We are compelled or more-so mandated to go by priories that are established by the Comprehensive Plan…The first priorities are transit. The second is short-term loading. The third is short-term parking for commercial turnover. So, that’s the legal framework that we live in. Residential is the fourth piece in the mix,” said Polley.

“If the residents that are actually in the heart of this thriving community are gone, all of sudden you change the character of what draws people here in the first place,” said a resident.