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Citywide Permit Parking Zones
About the Program
As La Mesa has grown, the demands on the available public parking spaces have intensified. In some cases, on-street parking use has expanded beyond the immediately adjacent street onto adjoining streets or even separate neighborhoods of the City. The Citywide Permit Parking Program was established to ensure that residents, businesses, public facility patrons, and other users have fair and equitable access to the available on-street public parking, where there is significant competition for available spaces. This program applies to all areas outside the Downtown Village Parking District. For parking permits within the Downtown Village District, please click here.
Permit Parking Zone Process
Permit Parking Zones are established in areas where parking is severely impacted and where a disproportionate share of the parking is being taken by one group of users, such as commuters. The process involves a partnership between residents, City staff, and elected officials. The following steps are required for establishing a permit zone in your neighborhood:
Step 1. Preliminary Petition
Determine if there is consensus in your neighborhood for establishing a Permit Parking Zone. A petition is used to document this neighborhood support which is available by clicking here. A petition request must include a minimum parking area of approximately thirty spaces and include signatures of at least 66% of the properties within the proposed zone requested. Please note that a Permit Parking Zone could restrict the number of vehicles for each residence or business and will require annual fees to be paid by the users. This should be carefully considered during the petition process. Please submit the completed and fully signed petition to the City’s Traffic Engineering team traffic@cityoflamesa.us or call at (619) 667-1166 for mailing instructions.
Step 2. Parking Study
After the petition has been submitted to Traffic Engineering with the appropriate threshold of signatures, data will be obtained by a Traffic Engineer to verify that the area meets the minimum criteria for a Permit Parking Zone. Factors include such items as how much non-resident vehicles are parking in the neighborhood, average length of time vehicles are parked, peak demand times, and the total number of vehicles using on-street parking. The Traffic Engineer will establish a boundary for the zone based on the data obtained. Each petition will be studied in the order they are received, based on the resources available to conduct them. The current list of completed Initial Petitions that have been received by the City is available by clicking here.
Step 3. Final Petition
Once the parking study is available, a revised final petition will be formally addressed to each resident of the proposed Permit Parking Zone showing the established boundary and parking restrictions (hours, days of restriction, number of permits, etc.). Support of at least 75% of residents is needed to continue.
Step 4. Mobility Commission & Council Approval
The Mobility Commission and City Council will approve or deny the establishment of the Permit Parking Zone.
Step 5. Signage & Enforcement If approved, appropriate signage will be installed within 60 days. Enforcement will begin within 120 days, during which time residents will need to obtain parking permits.
Obtaining a Parking Permit for Approved Zones and Fees
The City currently has no approved Permit Parking Zones under this policy and is in the process of developing a system for issuing permits. The City Council has established a yearly fee for parking permit zones is $25/year for each permit issued.