In 2010, the Santa Monica City Council adopted the Land Use and Circulation Element (LUCE), following a six year public process. The LUCE called for addressing congestion, air quality, greenhouse gas emissions, housing affordability, and sustainability through transportation policy and included a target of no net new PM peak vehicle trips. One of the first areas to benefit from the new plan was the city’s Bergamot area, which was ready to improve access around its station.
Nelson\Nygaard developed multimodal transportation and parking recommendations for Bergamot to transform it from a largely auto-oriented industrial area to a connected, walkable transit-oriented development that would complement the area’s new rail station. The resulting plan included strict transportation demand management requirements on new development to meet the city’s vehicle trip thresholds, a phased parking plan to encourage new development without oversupplying spaces, and protections for surrounding residential neighborhoods to prevent “spillover” parking effects.