Blog: Los Angeles is a city of parking lots. It doesn’t have to be – Los Angeles Times

And what if similar reductions were applied to residential neighborhoods as well? One possible result explored by our study could be a reimagining, in contemporary terms, of some of the city’s most beloved and iconic development models, such as the courtyard projects of the 1920s and ’30s, in which modestly sized units enclosed a central landscaped open space. These classic Los Angeles dwellings have been more or less impossible to build for the last 70 years, largely due to parking requirements. While they are no higher than two or three stories, and thus able to sit comfortably within the scale of a low-rise district, courtyard developments can achieve densities three or four times that of single-family houses, promoting a more transit-friendly and environmentally sustainable way of life.