Parking narrative_2024-01-09Parking narrative:
In an effort to develop a compact, pedestrian-focused, vertically-mixed-use community in the Downtown Mixed use character area, the development team is endeavoring to make the most efficient
use of parking stalls both within the redevelopment parcels and among several adjacent parcels that have an effective surplus of under-utilized parking. The proposed development requires
581 stalls, of which 313 must be enclosed. The proposed plan provides 467 stalls (of which 408 are enclosed) on the development sites, resulting in a deficit of 115 stalls. This calculation
takes into account the shared parking reduction allowed between uses with substantially different peak demand times (Sec 20-1117(d)). The development team proposes to provide the remaining
115 stalls off-site, using a combination of existing and newly-proposed parking access agreements. The City of Chanhassen zoning code provides for the City Council to approve off-site
parking if certain conditions are met (Sec 20-1117(c)). Listed below are the off-site parking resources the development team proposes to use in order to satisfy the development’s required
parking:
25 surface stalls south of the “cinema parcel” (East Building):
An existing easement (Doc # A387167) allows the cinema parcel unrestricted use of 25 stalls. We propose to use these stalls for residents of the East Building.
52 Surface stalls south of The Venue and east of the East Building:
When The Venue was developed, it provided the exact number of required parking spaces on site (361 stalls, of which 134 were required to be enclosed). Since it was developed, the required
parking minimums for multifamily housing have decreased. When the development is analyzed with today’s required parking minimums, the housing would require 52 fewer stalls for residents.
Anecdotally, the surface lot south of the Venue is chronically under-utilized. An existing easement (Doc #A662710) allows the cinema parcel to park in the entire 136-stall lot, but
prohibits overnight parking. The development team, which still retains ownership of The Venue, proposes to modify this easement to allow unrestricted parking for 52 stalls.
37 enclosed stalls in the Southwest Transit parking garage:
An existing easement (Doc #A662708) gives The Venue and Cinema parcels access to 103 stalls in the SW Transit parking facility but restricts use to weekends and weekday nights between
6:00 pm and 2:00 am the following morning. This time restriction doesn’t allow these stalls to be effectively used for resident parking but the allowable times correspond closely with
the typical peak use of guests of residents. The development team proposes to use 37 of these stalls toward the combined 65 required guest stalls for The Venue and East Building.
While the proposed development provides all 313 required enclosed parking stalls on-site, they are distributed unequally between the East and West Buildings. Due to the narrow dimensions
of the Cinema site, it is not feasible to provide all of the enclosed stalls that the residential use requires because the narrow site does not allow for the internal ramping needed
for a multi-level parking structure. The design of the east building provides 69 of the 126 stalls that are required to be enclosed. development team proposes to put in place an access
easement that grants the East Building the use of 57 enclosed stalls in the West Building.