Encinitas is getting serious about where people park and for how long.
City leaders took an opening step this month toward making it easier for homeowners to get time-limited parking on residential streets. At the Nov. 19 City Council meeting, the council introduced a code update aimed at allowing daytime multi-hour parking restrictions. Also, it approved a three-hour limit for a neighborhood street near Quail Gardens Drive.
Councilmembers voted unanimously to approve the three-hour restriction for Paseo Las Verdes after residents warned that nearby development and new apartment projects could push future residents into on-street spaces currently used by single-family homes, as reported by The San Diego Union-Tribune.
What the draft ordinance would change
The draft ordinance (Ordinance No. 2025-20) would amend Chapter 14.40 to create formal rules for longer time-limited parking zones and spell out how they are implemented. As outlined in Ordinance No. 2025-20, the proposal would:
- Let the city traffic engineer designate time-limited zones from 20 minutes up to four hours
- Require petitions from affected residents
- Require an engineering occupancy survey showing the average parking duration is more than double the requested limit before staff recommends a restriction
How the new process would work
City staff told the council the proposed process would address daytime parking needs only and that any restriction would apply just to the stretch of curb directly in front of the home or business that requested it. The idea is to target problem areas without applying new rules to entire blocks.
Councilmember Joy Lyndes requested that the code changes include notice to homeowners and businesses within 300 feet of the proposed limit, and Mayor Bruce Ehlers urged the city’s mobility and traffic safety commission to review the proposal before the council moves to a final vote, according to a report from The San Diego Union-Tribune.
Neighbors and parking pressure
Local community groups say the move is a response to mounting parking pressure from both new developments and recreational visitors headed to parks and trails. The Encinitas Ranch Community Association and other neighborhood voices have urged the council to act proactively around Las Verdes and adjacent streets to prevent spillover parking into single-family neighborhoods, as documented by the local community association earlier this year.
What’s next
The ordinance was formally introduced at the Nov. 19 meeting and includes staff contact information for the city traffic engineer. It will come back to the council after the advisory review process.
According to the city’s board's information, the Mobility & Traffic Safety Commission, which advises the council on traffic and parking measures and meets regularly, is the body staff expects to involve as the code language is refined. The commission’s role and meeting details are outlined both on its website and in council materials.
The city agenda packet and the commission site provide the full ordinance language and the next procedural steps.
