Technology has changed the way we do pretty much everything in our daily lives. With technology-based transportation and convenience services such as Uber, Lyft, ZipCar, Instacart for groceries and Amazon for basically everything else, the ways people are getting around cities is changing drastically. These services dramatically reduce the need for people to use their personal vehicles, and this could mean a change in the future of land use in urban areas.

In today’s episode, we chat with NRPA’s Vice President of Urban and Government Affairs, Kevin O’Hara, about how this shift in how people are getting around cities is causing the use of parking lots to decline, and how that land can be used in other, more environmentally friendly ways. He explains that this transition into a “ride-sharing economy,” coupled with a complete waste of urban space, provides a huge opportunity for increased land use for parks and recreation in dense urban areas.

Converting these unused asphalt parking lots into parks, green spaces or urban farms is a way that we can not only brighten our communities and cities, but our future as well. Many people view their favorite parks as their “paradise” — this could be our opportunity to reclaim that paradise.