THE reasons behind Trader Joe’s small parking lots – which often causes frustration for its customers – has been explained.
Trader Joe’s, a popular grocery store chain known for its unique selection of affordable, high-quality products has built a reputation for its quirky branding as well as its often smaller, neighborhood-focused locations.
Trader Joe’s is known among shoppers who like to drive for its tight parking lots[/caption]
Many complain there isn’t enough room in store parking lots – with one store in Denver described as “like a postage stamp”[/caption]
The popular grocery store chain has a unique selection of affordable, high-quality products – built on a reputation for its quirky branding[/caption]
But while many shoppers love the store for its curated inventory and affordable prices, it has a reputation for its postage-stamp sized parking lots which are notorious for being crowded and chaotic.
This is especially true in Denver, where Next 9News looked at the reasons behind this unusual phenomenon – describing the parking lot at the 8th and Colorado Boulevard store as a “postage stamp”, adding “welcome to hell.”
According to civil engineering experts that they spoke to, the parking lot size is meant to be proportional to the store size.
With Trader Joe’s stores smaller compared to typical grocery stores, their parking spaces are designed to match that scale.
This, in turn, results in fewer parking spots.
Furthermore Trader Joe’s often chooses locations in walkable, urban neighborhoods rather than sprawling suburban areas.
And this means not all customers rely on cars to shop there – which redudes the need for extensive parking.
Unlike suburban giants like Costco, which have massive parking lots, Trader Joe’s aligns with urban planning ideals by not oversupplying parking spaces.
Many urban planners believe this approach is simply better suited to the neighborhoods Trader Joe’s serves.
COf course, some shoppers will find the parking situation frustrating, but experts say Trader Joe’s parking lots are more appropriately sized compared to other retailers – which often overestimate parking needs.
This comes as, earlier in the year, it was revealed that hundreds of cities across the US were looking to slash parking bay requirements under a set of new laws – making life trickier for motorists.
At present, the country has around two billion parking spots – roughly seven for every car.
To put this into perspective, they would cover an area around the size of West Virginia.
But this could change in the near future as parking lots and spaces are being taken back and removed to make room for much-needed housing and to create more walkable cities.
According to the New York Times’ research, many cities have already reduced or eliminated parking requirements, including San Jose, Raleigh, Lexington, Austin, and New York City.
These changes have led to more housing development but have also faced backlash from residents concerned about reduced parking, increased traffic, and higher demand for on-street spaces.
Christof Spieler, a structural engineer and urban planner at the Rice School of Architecture in Houston, said: “I think you often end up in a situation where people have to walk farther to get to a parking spot, circle longer before finding a parking spot, and plan ahead about where they’re going to park.”
However, studies show that reducing parking requirements can lead to more housing.
For instance, Seattle’s relaxed parking rules have enabled significant housing development.
Similarly, Buffalo saw increased housing development after eliminating parking minimums.
“It helps to unlock land that was formerly parking spaces,” said Daniel Hess, a professor of urban and regional planning at the University at Buffalo.
“It’s the simplest zoning reform you can have.
“Minimum parking requirements have done immense harm. We have so much asphalt.”
Are you covered by law to park on a public street?
Parking on a public street is generally legal, even in front of someone’s house, experts say.
Unless the home is in an HOA subdivision, an apartment complex with assigned spaces, or there are posted laws against parking during certain days or hours, it is not illegal to park a vehicle in front of someone’s home on a public street.
“Generally speaking, an individual citizen does not ‘own’ or have any ongoing exclusive right to use a parking space on a public street,” wrote Nolo Legal.
“These spaces are open to the public on a first-come, first-serve basis.”
Most states do have rules against vehicles being parked in the same spot for 72 hours, or blocking fire hydrants, driveways, and sidewalks, as a parked vehicle in those spaces presents a safety hazard.
