Whether it’s the new baseball stadium or the Target in Columbia Heights, 2008 is shaping up to be the year of the great parking debate.

As we’ve reported, D.C. Council member Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6) has floated a number of proposals to manage parking around the new stadium and surrounding neighborhoods, while Greater Greater Washington recently wrote that Council member Jim Graham (D-Ward 1) has kicked off discussions on how best to handle parking for the new DC USA retail complex set to open in Columbia Heights. In both cases, elected officials are trying to find ways to best balance the expected influx of drivers and the needs of neighborhood residents who rely on on-street parking.

Those two cases are feeding a larger discussion on parking in the District. Earlier this year, urban planning blogger Richard Layman included in his 2008 wish-list a review of the city’s on-street parking regulations, with an eye towards making parking permits better reflect the cost to the District of providing on-street parking. And just last week DCist co-founder Rod Goodspeed added some academic heft to the debate, quoting UCLA planning professor Donald Shoup’s belief that curb parking should no longer be as cheap and easily accessible as it has been. Goodspeed also noted that city officials have kicked off a comprehensive review of the District’s zoning code, including parking.

We can’t say this isn’t long overdue. The more the District continues to grow, the more it will be necessary for city officials to craft parking regulations that are better tailored to the specific circumstances of particular areas. And as space becomes more and more scarce, it becomes vital to carefully assess what each parking space is costing us and how it could be better employed for other purposes.

Let the great parking debate begin!