As Portland moves forward with ridding city code of parking minimums, a Seattle-area firm is heavily investing in a series of urban studio apartment buildings with no parking.

The developer’s plans are not dependent on city officials’ decision, enacted in a Nov. 23 City Council vote, to do away with requiring developers to include parking in multifamily projects of more than 30 units. The changes, part of comprehensive plan amendments, will take effect in January 2018.

But the project illustrates the type that Portland is poised to see grow as millennials demand apartment units in close-in neighborhoods and developers find they can build them with little or no parking.

The development model is likely to exacerbate existing conflicts between developers and residents who fear greater traffic and a deficit of street parking in established neighborhoods.

Koz Development, based in Snohomish, Washington, recently asked for planning assistance with a proposal for an apartment building with 95 studio units and no parking at 1111 N.W. 16th Ave., in the Northwest District near Interstate 405.

Koz is also developing across the street, at 1015-1039 N.W. 16th Ave., a project that calls for 128 units and no parking. A design review hearing was held Dec. 1, and the developer hopes to obtain a building permit soon.

Residents are deeply concerned that Koz will plop down 223 units in an established neighborhood with no additional parking and little city investment in infrastructure.

“I know the city’s wishful thinking is that they think once the traffic gets bad enough, everyone’s going to get around on mass transit,” said Roger Vrilakas, a resident who serves on the Northwest District Association planning committee. “But they don’t have any plans to make a world-class mass transit system.”

The many-units, no-parking model is most profitable for both the city and the developer, Vrilakas said.

“The additional increase in services to the Northwest (District) is nil, so (city officials) get to rake it in and the developer gets to rake it in, but the rest of us get to live in the type of cities we left in the ’80s,” he said.

Vrilakas emphasized he wasn’t speaking for the planning committee.

Koz Development works to find urban sites where the model makes sense, chief executive Cathy Reines said.

“We for the most part build our projects with little or limited parking while making sure we’re located near mass transit,” she said.

Koz was attracted to Portland by strong economic indicators and a growing rental-friendly population, Reines said.

“Portland has a great millennial demographic, and that’s growing,” she said.

Brian Worley, a spokesman for Mayor Charlie Hales, who backed eliminating parking minimums, said Hales was not available for an interview.

Increasingly, developers are building studio apartments, which offer the highest returns per square foot. That’s beginning to make a dent in the need for more affordably priced rental housing, but it’s also causing parking congestion across Portland and leading tenant advocates to point to a lack of larger units.

While some residents of Koz’s developments will surely have cars, the developer seeks to appeal to non-drivers, said Joshua Scott, a vice president with the firm.

“We are certainly looking for residents that have limited or no interest in automobiles for transportation,” he said.

Most of Koz’s units are studios, but some units at the 128-unit development in Northwest Portland will offer two bedrooms, Scott said.

The apartments will be distinct from “micro-units,” which often share bathrooms and kitchens, Scott said.

In Seattle – where development often serves as a harbinger of what’s to come in Portland – apartment units have become ever smaller. The Seattle Times recently spotlighted an ad for a 130-square-foot “studio” apartment that includes a sink and a toilet open to the rest of the unit. One Reddit user referred to the apartment as a “prison cell with large windows.”

That is not Koz Development’s model, Scott said. Each Koz unit will have its own cooking facilities, bathroom and loft used for sleeping or storage.

“We do fully self-contained, small studio apartments,” he said.

The interiors themselves are high quality, with durable finishes and a modern aesthetic, Scott said. Also, ample bike parking will be provided.

The model is intended for young people who want to live in the city and not stay holed up in their homes.

“We don’t have a lot of other amenities because we really encourage residents to live in their communities,” he said.

In addition to the Northwest Portland projects, Koz is at work elsewhere in the city. Scott expects to break ground within a month on a 30-unit project, with no parking, at 2161 S.W. Yamhill St. in Goose Hollow.

Then Koz will tackle a 114-unit project at 2211 S.W. Fourth Ave. near Portland State University, with 25 parking spaces located in a ground-level garage. Finally, the developer plans an approximately 80-unit project at 1299 S.E. Ankeny St. with approximately 15 parking spaces.

Koz designs its projects with in-house architects. Seabold Construction is under contract for the Goose Hollow project, and general contractors have not been selected yet for the subsequent projects.

Koz found success with several projects in the Seattle area, including in the University District, before replicating the model in Portland and Tacoma, Washington. Koz is looking at additional markets, Reines said.

Many new, large projects offer parking, although parking ratios have declined in some cases to 0.7 parking spots per unit or less.

Investors continue to support parking, believing many prospective tenants still demand space for their cars.

“To create even a small amount of parking, just five or 10 stalls, is everyone doing their part,” said Noel Johnson, a principal at developer Cairn Pacific.

Building no parking at all can lead to problems, Johnson said.

“It creates a hotspot in the neighborhood,” he said. “It creates frustration.”

Koz’s Northwest Portland projects are near several bars and eateries. Scott said the buildings will provide a noise buffer from Interstate 405.

Northwest Portland neighborhoods have created parking districts to give residents the ability to find street parking. Koz’s projects near Northwest 16th Avenue and Marshall Street are in a parking district known as Zone K. Nearby, in Zone M, residents who serve on a parking committee have discussed capping the number of parking permits issued to residents. Already, there are twice as many passes as spaces, which is possible because not everyone parks in the neighborhood at the same time, said Karen Karlsson, who serves on the Northwest Portland parking stakeholder advisory committee.

Zone K’s parking regulations are less robust, Karlsson said.

“That number of units in Zone K is a disaster,” she said.

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