The City of Colorado Springs is proposing an amendment to the City’s Unified Development Code (UDC) that will create a fourth (4th) parking exempt area, which will limit minimum parking requirements for certain multi-family residential land uses within the Applicable Transit Service Area, as designated by the Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) published map. The proposal will allow the City to comply with House Bill 24-1304. Currently, the UDC requires a minimum number of parking spaces in association with multi-family developments in all areas of the City, except those areas identified as exempt in section 7.4.1002 of the UDC.
About
Project Background
In May of 2024, HB24-1304 was signed into law. This law prohibits certain jurisdictions, including Colorado Springs, from enacting or enforcing minimum parking requirements on land use applications for multi-family residential, adaptive reuse for residential or adaptive reuse for mixed-use with at least 50% residential use. The land use applications affected by this legislation are located at least partially within an applicable Transit Service Area (TSA). The TSA is identified on a map produced by the Department of Local Affairs (DOLA) that is based on a ¼ mile radius of transit stops with 30 minutes or less service (View TSA Map here). Jurisdictions may require a maximum of one parking space per unit for applications with twenty (20) or more units if there is a finding of “substantial negative impact” based on specific criteria.
The City is proposing a modification to the UDC to create a new parking exempt geographical area for multi-family developments. The exempt area is defined as the Transit Service Area as mapped by DOLA. The exemption directly reflects the mandates within HB24-1304, stating that certain multi-family developments located at least partially within the TSA are not required to provide parking. Should a development voluntarily provide parking, those spaces must meet the UDC’s standards.
Project Purpose
The purpose of this Amendment to UDC Text is to comply with the state legislative mandates within HB24-1304 which goes into effect July 1, 2025. The legislation does not provide flexibility for subject jurisdictions to curtail or alter the prescribed directives. While the City of Colorado Springs is established as a “home rule city” and is afforded the power and privileges to self-govern, the Colorado General Assembly has declared that the required minimum amount of parking spaces for a real property is considered a matter of mixed statewide and local concern.
Public Engagement
Stakeholder Meetings: The City met with internal City departments, external agencies and representatives of the multifamily development community to review the state mandates and the City’s proposed modification to the UDC.
No public meetings were held because the legislation does not allow flexibility to modify the requirements. This webpage was created to provide the public with information on the legislation and the proposed text changes to the UDC and to provide an avenue for questions or comments.