Nearly half
of downtown Detroit
was demolished
to create space
to store
automobiles

Detroit has an oversupply of parking.

  • Parking makes up 40% of all land parcels in downtown Detroit.
  • There are an estimated 800 million parking spaces in the United States, serving 212 million licensed drivers. There are almost four parking spots per driver.
  • Detroit zoning laws require that developers include a minimum amount of free parking that can far exceed true market demand. Parking minimums inflate development costs, which developers pass along to end-users in the form of higher prices and rents.

Surface parking keeps spreading.

Change is needed.

  • Until common-sense solutions are studied and implemented, we call for a moratorium on new commercial surface parking lots in downtown Detroit.
Downtown Detroit parking map

Be a part of the solution.

Detroit then and now

Hundreds, if not thousands, of historic structures were leveled for surface parking, starting in the early 20th century and continuing to the present day. These buildings, if still standing, could provide much-needed housing.

The Madison-Lenox Hotel circa 1905...
...demolished in 2005 for surface parking.
Madison-Lenox Hotel (c. 1905)
The Empire Building...
...demolished in the 1990s for surface parking
The Empire Building...
The Albert Khan-designed Detroit Times building opened in 1929 and lends its name to Times Square...
...it was demolished in 1978 for a surface parking lot.
The Albert Khan-designed Detroit Times building opened in 1929 and lends its name to Times Square...

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