Fargo/West Fargo
Parking and Access Requirement Study
In recent years, the cities of Fargo and West Fargo have seen multiple development requests that have necessitated variances and waivers to the parking requirements in the Land Development Code for individual projects. This has led to an increase in staff’s workload trying to determine the adequacy of parking on a site-by-site or land use by land use basis. This is true of both residential (medium and high density) and commercial areas. City staff have questioned what the best practice is for regulating parking space counts and what this specific region’s demand for parking really is.
Other concerns related to this issue include how many driveway access points are needed for these developments, the general spacing of and distance between access points, the manner in which access points should be developed around signalized intersections, and an access management strategy to load traffic from these locales onto the transportation network.
In 2012, the City of Fargo adopted a new comprehensive plan, GO2030. This plan set forth many principles that should be utilized in looking at how traffic should function within different built environments and streets in Fargo. In 2016, Metro COG, in cooperation with the City of Fargo, completed the Southwest Metropolitan Transportation Plan. This plan defined the transportation infrastructure improvements needed as development expands south from current city limits. The plan was followed up by an effort to determine how land use would be defined and development possibly manifest on a section-by-section basis. Metro COG is interested in determining how access on functionally classified roadways should be managed, especially along corridors with high potential for regional travel.
In 2016, Metro COG, in cooperation with the City of West Fargo, completed an analysis of the Sheyenne Street corridor. This two-phase project looked at both the need to expand the Sheyenne corridor near I-94 and the need to reconfigure the downtown portion of the roadway to meet redevelopment goals. This study would complement the results of the Sheyenne Corridor Study by applying the lessons of that corridor to West Fargo’s growth areas.
The City of West Fargo is currently in the process of updating its comprehensive plan. The consultant selected to perform this study will be expected to coordinate with the City of West Fargo to ensure the goals and objectives of this study align with those developed as part of the West Fargo Comprehensive Plan.
Project Contact Information
Michael Maddox
701-532-5104
Fargo-Moorhead Metropolitan Council of Governments
Case Plaza, Suite 232
One 2nd Street North
Fargo, ND 58102
