Permits Smithfield to require 2 parking spaces for each studio, one-bedroom, or two-bedroom low- or moderate-income housing unit upon the determination that limited or no local public transportation or off-street parking is available near these units.

Plain-English Summary

This bill would give the town of Smithfield, Rhode Island a specific authority related to parking requirements for affordable housing developments. Under current state law, there are general rules about how many parking spaces towns can require for different types of housing. This bill would allow Smithfield to require two parking spaces per unit for studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom apartments that are designated as low- or moderate-income (affordable) housing — but only under certain conditions.

The key condition is that Smithfield must first determine that the area near those housing units has limited or no public transportation options and limited or no existing off-street parking nearby. In other words, the town can only apply this two-space requirement if residents would genuinely need their own cars to get around and wouldn't have easy access to other parking options.

This bill directly affects affordable housing developers who want to build in Smithfield, as well as future residents of those developments. Requiring more parking spaces per unit can increase the cost of building a housing project, which may affect how many affordable units get built or where they are located. It could also affect current Smithfield residents who are concerned about parking and traffic in their neighborhoods near new housing.

The bill has been introduced and sent to the Senate Housing and Municipal Government Committee, where it will be reviewed before any further action is taken.