Compromise Parking Plan Passes

Alders will get a chance to scrutinize Yale University and Yale-New Haven Hospital’s parking plans before either can make a move on any new building projects.

That’s the net effect of an ordinance alders passed Tuesday night to tackle tensions between the growing institutions and the neighborhoods they call home.

Alders already had the authority to review and approve the parking plans of any entity that was required to submit what is known as an ​“Overall Parking Plan” if those plans required a change of more than 100 spaces.

The new ordinance now give alders greater authority to review all development plans that involve any amount of parking by such entities. So far only two entities have been identified that fit that definition: Yale University and Yale-New Haven Hospital. So this ordinance now gives alders more opportunities to weigh in on building projects — or at least the parking aspects of projects — planned by those two entities.

East Rock Alder Jessica Holmes said the city has struggled to manage the impact of the growth and expansion of entities like Yale and Yale-New Haven Hospital on neighborhoods with that limited amount of oversight at the board level. 

Though ​“the Medical Area Overall Parking Plan has grown from 7,131 parking spaces (2006) to 11,771 parking spaces (2014), providing for an estimated 14,000 staff and students plus 845,000 annual visitors,” according to the language of the ordinance amendment, neighbors have said that they are constantly battling employees looking for free parking in residential neighborhoods rather than paying.

The ordinance amendment further points out that ​“since 2007, no Overall Parking Plan has been subject to a single public hearing nor any review or approval by the Board of Alders or any city agency.”

That meant that before Tuesday night’s vote, parking plans could be amended when such entities sought zoning relief or site plan approval without any public airing specifically on the impact of what such changes might do to neighborhood residential parking.

Now any change to an overall parking plan would trigger at least two trips to City Hall for at least a public hearing and a final vote by alders before Yale or Yale-New Haven Hospital can apply for any relief or other approvals from the city.

The legislation was cosponsored by 28 members of the Board of Alders.

“As these entities continue to grow, as I hope they do, this legislation will insure that the amount of parking they provide increases as well as alternatives to traditional parking, including transit oriented development,” Holmes said Tuesday night. ​“That will provide some relief to the overburdened residential streets. In addition, this legislation will improve the coordination of the city’s economic development and planning processes. It will encourage better transportation planning to serve the needs of commuters at the city’s largest institutions including carpooling, public transit and bicycle and pedestrian access. “

In addition to the ordinance amendment, the board passed a companion resolution creating a working group to review the city’s zoning ordinances that govern parking. The eight member group will consist of four people appointed by the Mayor and four appointed by the leadership of the Board of Alders. The group will include representatives from the mayor’s administration, from the Board of Alders and from community and institutional stakeholders, according to the resolution.

Lauren Zucker, Yale’s director of New Haven Affairs, declined to comment on the passing of the ordinance Tuesday night.

The ordinance resulted from a compromise between the alders — most of whom were elected with the support of Yale’s unions — and city officials, who feared the original language would impede development. The compromise specified that the additional new review would specifically concern parking. It also sets up a new body to study parking policies.