Council pushes for written policy after individual request spurs Seawall parking-zone change
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Summary
A councilmember’s request to add one block to a Seawall permit-parking zone prompted council discussion about creating a written policy (including a 75% property-owner threshold) before approving future block-level parking restrictions; staff said the current request will proceed but advised writing the policy first for future requests.
Council members discussed a staff request to add a single block on Avenue R to the city’s Seawall parking-permit zone after a resident petition. Staff said the change was far along in the process and would be allowed to proceed, but multiple council members pushed to adopt a formal written policy before handling future one-block requests.
Public works and infrastructure staff told the council the $155,000 figure shown in the agenda package represented the broader traffic-signage and traffic program line item, not the cost to add a single block’s signs. Staff said the actual costs for signage and enforcement of a single block are small, while the larger expense is the ongoing enforcement and administration of permit programs.
Councilmembers argued that future changes to residential parking rules should require a supermajority of property owners on a block — staff suggested 75% as a possible threshold — before the city imposes permit or guest-pass obligations on neighbors. The council also directed staff to draft a formal policy and bring it back for adoption; until that policy is in place, the one block before council will move forward because it was already in process.
Council asked staff to return with a written policy that defines thresholds for block-level parking restrictions, rules for guest passes and enforcement costs, and a sunset or review mechanism to evaluate whether a parking zone should be continued.