Detroiters take over parking spots in Cadillac Square to demand parking reforms for greater downtown

Detroiters for Parking Reform launch press conference — Francis Grunow of Detroiters for Parking Reform speaks during the launch press conference on Sept. 20, 2019

There are more parking spaces Downtown than ever before. Nearly 40% of land in Downtown Detroit is devoted to this use. World class cities are not defined by how much parking they have.
Collecting data on available office space space is vital to a healthy, functioning real estate market. Why doesn’t Detroit have the same understanding of its parking market, especially when it takes up so much space?
Detroit’s neighborhoods should benefit directly from parking revenues.
Detroiters for Parking Reform is utilizing PARK(ing) Day, an annual event encouraging people to transform metered parking spaces into temporary parklets, to unveil its call to action.

September 20, 2019 – DETROIT – A group of Detroit residents have come together to call for greater accountability and important changes to policies that govern parking in Downtown Detroit, Michigan. “We are assembly of concerned citizens and affiliated organizations who believe Detroit can and should do better when it comes to managing its parking resources,” says Francis Grunow, a spokesperson for Detroiters for Parking Reform, “Choosing cars over people diminishes the experience of the city, our health, and our economy. It’s a quality of life issue for all Detroiters.” “It’s stunning really,” adds Tess Parr, who analyzed data for the group, “Downtown’s parking footprint is the size of 10 Ford Fields, or over six TCF Centers.”

Among other reforms outlined in its position paper, the group is calling on Mayor Mike Duggan to institute a moratorium on the creation of new surface parking lots in Downtown and Midtown, especially for commercial purposes. “We started meeting earlier this year, when the historic Detroit Saturday Night Building was threatened with demolition,” says Eric Kehoe, former President of Preservation Detroit, “And when the former Gold Dollar burned recently, we moved into high gear. We’ve lost too much of Detroit’s built environment already.”

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