Less parking, more possibilities

This space at SE 12th Ave and Hawthorne in Portland confused me for the longest time:

For one thing, the diner there had no sign on the outside, so I didn't even know its name until figuring out online that it was called Johnny B's, and at one point did in fact say so across the top of the building.  (Presumably I also could have actually eaten there and figured this out, but I didn't want to, ok?)

Location of Lardo (formerly Johnny B's)

Even more perplexing was the fact that it sits in a prime location at the northwest edge of Ladd's Addition, right near a major intersection...and yet the lot was being used as a parking lot with a small, content-to-be-anonymous diner that hardly anyone seemed to patronize, at least these days.

That all changed recently.  Lardo (formerly a food cart) remodeled the place and decided to use the asphalt for outdoor seating and bike racks instead of car parking.  It drew crowds instantly, and looks like this pretty much every evening:

My shadow is clearly in this for artistic effect

Quite the transformation, but my main point is not about the space's redevelopment per se.  An all-too-common belief is that without providing ample (car) parking - usually for free - businesses will fail.  Although Lardo has a lot more things going for it that contribute to its success, this example provides some evidence to the contrary of this thinking.

So it seems to me that it's possible for customers to adapt to the businesses they want to support, and not always the other way around - which is encouraging for business owners who want to limit the transportation impact of their shop/store/restaurant.  And if doing so brings the added benefit of revitalizing a previously dead space, then it adds value to the surrounding area.  Everybody wins!  Yay.


Update (Aug 13, 2012): This article in The Atlantic Cities talks about Zurich's new parking policy of capping the number of spaces, and turning existing parking into public space any time parking is added elsewhere (in a one-to-one match).  Any guess as to what my opinion is?