Design panel advances parklet standards as downtown business owners warn of lost parking, safety risks

San Clemente’s Design Review Subcommittee on March 25 reviewed proposed standardized parklet designs for Avenida Del Mar and Avenida Victoria and heard more than a dozen public commenters urge tighter limits, stronger enforcement and a smaller, more transparent look for downtown parklets. Alexa Buzynski, assistant planner, told the subcommittee staff’s proposal would standardize sizes, planter and barrier materials, lighting and signage and asked the panel for design feedback.

The presentation and subsequent public comment centered on three practical questions: how large parklets should be, whether they should be sited directly in front of the business that operates them, and how the city will enforce the standards going forward. “We’re just looking for general feedback,” Buzynski said when she introduced the recommended standards, which lean toward wood or wood-like planters, limited umbrellas and consistent, traffic-rated planter barriers.

Why it matters: The downtown parklets represent a visible streetscape change that affects parking supply, pedestrian circulation and the…