Rising PricesDownUnder BY PETE GOLDIN L


ESS SPACE EQUALS GREATER unmet demand. Greater demand pushes costs up. It’s a logical assumption. Some voices in Australia’s parking industry say the efforts of the city councils to


reduce parking inAustralia’s urban areas – to reduce the number of vehicles and ultimately reduce conges- tion and greenhouse gases – is having a profound impact on the cost of anAustralian parking space.


While the cause may still be contestable, it is a fact that the


prices of parking spaces inAustralia are hitting record highs.The most recent news was the sale of a parking spot in the Bondi beach area of Sydney forAU$240,000 – a record for the country. Real EstateAgent Ric Serrao of Raine&HorneDouble Bay


sold the 16-square-meter single lock-up parking space on Brighton Boulevard in Sydney’s upscale North Bondi. “I now have a couple of other local clients that would even


pay more if they had the opportunity to get parking in their street,” says Serrao. “I guess a precedence has been set.” While not every parking space sale is setting records, a


March article in The Australian states that car parking spaces in Sydney, onceworthAU$5,000 toAU$10,000, are nowselling for betweenAU$40,000 andAU$140,000 each. Melbourne is also experiencing a rise in the cost of park-


ing spaces. “Our data indicates increases in the order of 10% to 20%


over the last two years,which is in linewith increases in property prices across the board,” confirms Councillor Brian Shannahan, Chair of the City ofMelbourne’s Finance and Governance Com- mittee, who states that sales of residential parking spaces ranges betweenAU$40,000 toAU$60,000 per bay inMelbourne.


Strong armof the law Many in Australia’s parking industry believe that parking


restrictions in urban areas are one of the major causes of the astronomical rise in the cost to purchase a parking space. “Definitely the local council’s change to street parking has


had a huge influence on the prices of parking spaces,” says Syd- ney real estate agent Ric Serrao. But a City of Sydney spokesperson says the restrictions


are simply the city’s reaction to an already tight supply of park- ing spaces. “The City tries to ensure parking is used fairly by everyone,”


says Sydney’s spokesperson. “Parking demand and congestion in the City of Sydney are increasing quickly. There are more cars competing for a limited number of spaces…Metered parking and enforcement increases turnover of parking spaces so resi- dents and visitors have a better chance of finding a parking spot.” On the other hand, Melbourne is clearly implementing


initiatives to limit parking and support a shift in travel behav- ior towards public and sustainable forms of transport, such as car sharing. For example, a proposed planning scheme amendment


(C133) inMelbourne will allow the provision of zero onsite car parking spaces and place a discretionary limit of one per dwelling


10 JUNE 2010 • PARKING WORLD • www.parkingworld.com


for developments over four stories in certain areas. This would represent a major shift fromMelbourne’s current policy which requires all new residential developments in these areas to pro- vide at least two onsite parking spaces per dwelling for develop- ments over four stories. “The Melbourne City Council’s strategy is to encourage


walking, cycling and use of public transport, but we recognize that car use is an integral part ofMelbourne life,” says Councillor Shannahan of Melbourne. “The concern of the Council is to strike the right balance.” TheAge reports that while the number of people working in


Melbourne has increased by 40,000 and the number of residents has increased by 4,000 over the past four years, on-street parking is actually decreasing. The online magazine states that in 2003 there were 3,230 on-street parking spaces inMelbourne, com- pared with 3,080 today. Even Perth, inWesternAustralia, has enacted parking poli-


cies to reduce vehicles. “Perth parking policy is aimed at reducing vehicles in the


Perth Central Business District (CBD),” says Joe Lenzo, Execu- tive Director,WesternAustralia, Property Council ofAustralia. “The key factor is tominimize forecast congestion.” “Themainmechanismbeing used to reduce parking is a pri-


vate and public car bay license fee – currentlyAU$586.00 per bay per annum,” he continues. “There is strong opposition to this levy as it penalizes city workers and shoppers. The Property Council, in our latest pre-budget submission, has called on the government to abolish the Perth Parking Levy. It has done noth- ing to reduce congestion onlymade parkingmore expensive.” Councillor Shannahan of Melbourne disagrees that his


city’s parking restrictions are the cause of rising prices of park- ing spots, however. “I don’t think you could draw the conclusion that parking


restrictions are driving prices,” Shannahan states. “The increases are not exceptional against the general propertymarket.”


Pete Goldin is the Technology Editor for Parking World. He can be reached at pete@parkingworld.com.


PW


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