Longmont Eliminates Parking Minimums, Wins Metro Vision Award

The City of Longmont has eliminated minimum parking requirements for new development and received a 2025 Metro Vision Award from the Denver Regional Council of Governments, meeting presenters said.

Regional officials said the policy change is intended to increase alternative transportation use and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by removing what they described as regulatory barriers to denser, more efficient development.

Phil Greenwald, City of Longmont staff, said minimum parking standards often lead developers to build more parking than demand requires. “So we see a lot of places where we put a minimum standard on parking, and people build above that. And so you get this unused parking for most of the year,” Greenwald said. He added that reassigning that space will be “critical” to making housing more affordable, supporting density and improving transit outcomes in Longmont.

A meeting presenter noted that the change lets communities and property owners have more flexibility in design and said Longmont’s action reflects themes in Metro Vision, the regional plan coordinated by the Denver Regional Council of Governments. The presenter said Longmont is “the first city in Colorado, and the first non coastal Western city in The US to eliminate minimum parking requirements.”

The presenters and Greenwald emphasized potential benefits often cited by cities that reduce parking requirements: lower development costs, less land devoted to parking so it can be used for housing or community uses, and support for walking, cycling and transit. The meeting record did not include a formal vote on the policy change at that session.

The Metro Vision Award recognition was presented without additional funding or specific implementation steps reported in the meeting transcript. Officials also provided an accessibility contact for the meeting online and by phone.