February 23, 2010 12:32PM 

# DC Shouldn’t Subsidize Parking Garages 

By [Tad DeHaven](https://www.cato.org/people/tad-dehaven) 

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The District of Columbia is providing [tax incentives for a parking garage](http://dcmud.blogspot.com/2010/02/constitution-square-signs-retailers.html) at a new Harris Teeter grocery store. This follows a District subsidized [parking garage boondoggle](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/07/AR2009100703996.html) that opened at a Columbia Heights mall in 2008. Whether it’s a parking garage, [bike rack](https://www.cato.org/2009/09/16/government-pays-4-million-for-a-bike-rack/), or any other commercial transportation activity, government should remain neutral. If Harris Teeter believes a 150-car parking garage is in the best interests of the company’s bottom line, it should pay for it itself. Taxpayers shouldn’t be on the hook. If the District or any other city wants to encourage economic development, it should seek lower taxes across the board, and remove costly regulatory barriers.

H/T Chris Moody

##### Related Tags 

[Tax and Budget Policy](https://www.cato.org/tax-budget-policy) 

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