DDOT Confirms That It Doesn’t Enforce Residential Parking Bans

• July 28, 2016

by Nena Perry-Brown

Street parking off 14th Street in Logan Circle

Earlier this week, UrbanTurf reported on whether or not the city’s ban on residential parking permits (RPP) at select new residential developments was enforceable. The impetus for this article was a District Department of Transportation (DDOT) report submitted to the Zoning Commission which seemingly admitted that the city is unable to enforce the prohibitions on RPPs.

The agency has since responded to UrbanTurf with the following explanation on DDOT’s role and limitations concerning RPP restrictions that developers commit to in exchange for zoning approval of parking relief:

“When residents apply for an RPP, DDOT and the Department of Motor Vehicles may not be aware of a contractual agreement between a landlord and tenant. There is no self-exemption process under current regulations, thus eligible residents applying for RPPs may receive them. The current exemption clauses being proffered during the zoning process are to be enforced between the developer, landlord, and any future tenants.”

The above statement is telling, as it means that the agencies which administer parking permits have no system in place to cross-reference and enforce the RPP bans at the new buildings. Additionally, this leaves the task of enforcing street parking prohibitions to development teams.

And while one can hope that good-faith efforts are made by developers to ensure their residents comply with such prohibitions, the city’s reliance on integrity and the honor system to enforce zoning relief concessions seems foolhardy at best.

This article originally published at http://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/ddot_responds_to_rpp_process/11519