The Ralph and Goldy Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies

The City of West Hollywood has ten preferential parking districts. District 1, which is composed mainly of owner-occupied, single-family homes surrounded by small, design-industry businesses, is unique in that it served as the City’s model preferential parking program and was among the first in the US. It is one of three districts in the City that have restrictions 24 hours a day and has permits for both residents and commercial users. There are three large attractors in the area: the Pacific Design Center, the Beverly Center, and the Cedars-Sinai Medical Complex (though the latter two are outside the city limits, all three lie on the border of the District). While any new business would trigger West Hollywood’s minimum parking requirements, most small businesses in the District have few (if any) off-street spaces because they were built prior to the City’s regulations and are therefore grandfathered. To cope with the lack of off-street parking, small business owners and their employees can buy permits that allow them to park on the residential streets.