NEWS · 5

Busting Myths about Georgetown Parking

BY CHRISTOPHER JONES

In Georgetown, few issues are as controversial as parking. With the pandemic easing and commercial activity bubbling up, higher numbers of automobile drivers are competing for open spots. Everyone’s got a grievance, but -- in the heat of the moment -- the nuances and complexities of finding a space for your car are often overlooked.

To make sense of Georgetown’s parking dynamics, The Georgetowner spoke with Rick Murphy, Chair of the GeorgetownBurleith Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC2E), Joe Sternlieb, CEO of the Georgetown Business Improvement District, and Jamie Scott, the BID’s Director for Planning and Economic Development.

Given Georgetown’s unique historic composition of small adjoining shops, narrow streets and a regional draw, they agreed that a delicate “balancing act” is required to meet the variety of commercial, residential and visitor needs in Georgetown, especially during the pandemic. Though they didn’t agree on everything, they did want to debunk certain myths surrounding the issue.

MYTH #1: GEORGETOWN DOESN’T HAVE ENOUGH PARKING.

Georgetown actually has plenty of available paid parking, though local residents and car visitors might have to scramble for free spaces. “We have over 7,000 parking spaces in Georgetown between on-street spaces, garages and lots,” Sternlieb said. Private parking garages and lots account for 3,200 spaces in Georgetown, according to data analyzed by Jamie Scott. “That’s probably about twice the amount of parking available for the Wharf,” Scott said.

“We feel there’s an adequate amount of parking in the garages and lots,” said Scott. “There are still about 1,100 metered spaces in Georgetown and 4,041 RPP [Residential Parking Permit] spaces in Georgetown and the city regulation allows visitors to park in those spaces for two hours. We’re not encouraging people to come and park in residential spaces, because it’s very important for residents to maintain the ability to park near their home… But I think there’s a lot of parking available in Georgetown.”

“There are a lot of spaces in the parking garages, particularly south of M St. and the BID is trying to encourage the operators to price in such a way as to make it attractive to people who would otherwise try to park on the street to try to park down there,” said Rick Murphy.

As the pandemic eases, ridesharing will also return, lowering demand for curbside parking, and freeing up curbside spaces. “The parking is there. We got some data from the [D.C.] Department of For-Hire Vehicles which is the city agency that regulates taxis, Ubers and Lyfts,” Scott said. “In 2019, before the pandemic, there were 1.5 million ride-sharing trips to and from Georgetown. Five years prior to that, there were probably none. Ridesharing has introduced a totally new way for people to get around. And there are many neighborhoods around the District that have popped up as entertainment, dining or retail destinations that, shockingly, don’t have tons of easily available curbside parking. And yet, people find a way to get there.”

With the pandemic, many Georgetown residents worked from home and kept their cars parked on the street, thereby reducing the number of available spaces. To the extent they return to their pre-pandemic commutes, neighborhood congestion may also be eased.

The BID and the ANC are also considering a program currently in use in Alexandria whereby residents are granted more free parking permits while non-residents are charged for parking on an hourly basis, thereby increasing street circulation as drivers stop trawling for free spaces. The idea is to “price the street parking for more turnover,” said Sternlieb.

Having lived in Georgetown for 18 years, Rick Murphy said he “gets it” when it comes to the complexities of finding residential parking in the neighborhoods. However, some long-term trends might be hopeful. According to the last D.C. Department of Transportation study on parking in Georgetown, automobile registrations among residents were declining. Given reduced car usage and the return of ridesharing, he said, “there may be less demand for parking as we come out of this.”

MYTH #2: THE STREATERIES AND SIDEWALK WIDENING PROJECTS ARE THE MAIN CAUSE OF PARKING PROBLEMS.

Of the thousands of available parking spaces in Georgetown, only a few hundred have been taken by streateries in response to the pandemic and the BID’s sidewalk widening program launched prior to Covid. “We’re not losing parking to streateries,” said Murphy.

According to Sternlieb, only 2.5 percent of available parking has been affected by 200 spaces being reassigned out of approximately 6,000 spaces in all of Georgetown. Moreover, these new features have allowed for pick-up and drop-off points critical for the flow of commercial traffic and Georgetown’s vibrancy. “We have replaced approximately 200 parking spaces with … something like 40 or 50 commercial loading pick-up and drop-off areas,” Sternlieb said. “So, what we’ve done is replaced storing private cars on our most valuable retail streets with places for people to get Uber and Lyft drop-offs and to get picked up, and for commercial loading to take place. For everyone else, we’re saying ‘listen, for the next six months, let’s see what wider sidewalks and outdoor dining can do to transform Georgetown into a more pedestrian focused historic neighborhood.’ ” Read 3 more myths at georgetowner.com...