Laguna Beach facing parklets versus parking debate

Laguna Beach is taking steps to address parking concerns in its downtown area, as some residents have raised issues about the parklets that were installed to assist restaurants during the coronavirus pandemic.

The parklets allowed for restaurants to continue to operate with an outdoor dining option, expanding the range of offerings beyond takeout that had become a reality of COVID-19 restrictions.

Some of those outdoor dining decks are in the crosshairs. Heidi Miller, the owner of World Newsstand, told the Laguna Beach City Council on Tuesday that she recently closed the newsstand, pointing to a parklet in front of the business as an explanation for a loss in sales.

Miller referenced three parklets on Ocean Avenue that she said are not being used most of the time.

“I’m surrounded by [parklets]. I’ve got three of them in front of me,” Miller said. “Nobody can come down and visit. My income is down. We went 12 days with zero sales. I’ve never had that in my life, and it’s simply because there wasn’t the in-and-out parking that was available, so that yellow zone is not only for me.

“It’s for everybody, it’s for Hennessey’s, it’s for The Wharf, it’s for Laguna Sushi. It’s for everybody, it’s for the Marine Room, and that’s needed.”

Mark McAvoy, the director of public works for Laguna Beach, said that city staff are considering a couple of options to alleviate the loss of the loading zone.

Community Development Director Marc Wiener said the temporary use permits attached to the parklets are revocable, but several council members spoke in favor of the parklets again on Tuesday.

“I got curious about the parking spaces on Ocean yesterday,” Mayor Pro Tem Sue Kempf said. “So I walked and I counted them, and I was thinking about the parklets and how many spaces they’re taking up. I actually counted 158 spaces, and there’s nine spaces taken up by the parklets.”

Kempf added that there would be nearly 200 parking spaces on Ocean Avenue if the council approved a plan to lease 35 parking spots from the Fritz Duda Co. at 232 Ocean Ave. for a three-month term that would take the city through the summer.

That agenda item was ultimately approved. The city will execute an agreement for the 35 parking spaces in an amount not to exceed $34,000. The cost of the agreement is to be covered by the parking fund.

The city would add those parking spots as paid public parking after 5 p.m. from Monday through Friday, as well as all day on weekends and holidays through September. Laguna Beach residents would be able to park for free for three hours with a shopper permit.

A staff report said that summer rates would go into effect at $4.50 per hour with a three-hour maximum. Payment is required until 9 p.m.

Chris Keller, the owner of the Marine Room, made the case for a parklet to remain in front of his bar.

“I know our parklet … has been a point of contention for some neighbors, and I just want to remind everybody we’ve been closed for 15 months,” Keller said at the meeting. “As of today, we’ve been open for two weeks, so we are just struggling to kind of get back and get things working and get the machine moving again and hopefully we’ll be able to survive and keep our institution going for many years.”

Councilman Peter Blake took the side of the restaurants on the parklet debate.

“How can somebody talk about a magazine stand when we’re talking about restaurants?” Blake asked. “How many people…do they employee, how many people — residents and tourists — do they serve?”

Following public input, Mayor Bob Whalen said he believes the parklets should remain in place through the end of the year.

“Everybody feels like COVID is over, and it’s a great feeling, right, that you’re back out, but if you’ve been open a month or two months, or you’re now back to capacity after six weeks or something, you’re not healthy financially,” Whalen said. “So I think it’s great for us to continue these parklets through the end of the year, and we’ll have a discussion to see what we do, if anything, beyond that.”

Councilwoman Toni Iseman argued that a solution to gaining public parking in downtown might be to find an alternative spot for employees to park their vehicles during their work shifts.

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