Council worsening parking situation
The Del Mar City Council is making the parking situation worse for businesses and adjacent residents.
We all know parking in downtown Del Mar is already very bad- there aren’t enough parking spaces for all the visitors.
In their quest for more sales tax revenue, the Council is promoting more restaurant/bars in the town by issuing 50 In-Lieu Parking Fees for parking spaces that don’t exist and likely will never be provided. That means 50 more cars being parked in the adjacent residential areas.
The property owner at 1201 Camino Del Mar has just been issued permits for 17 “in-Lieu parking spaces” required to open a restaurant/bar on the floor above the Prep Kitchen. That means a fee is paid instead of providing the new required parking.
The parking spaces don’t exist and likely never will. Why would the Prep Kitchen like having more restaurant patrons vying for their existing parking spaces? Why would the adjacent residents like having 17 more cars parking in front of their residences — lowering the property values?
And, if that isn’t bad enough, that same property owner has a space next door to the Prep Kitchen advertised for rent as, you guessed it, another restaurant/bar, requiring 20 more of those 50 in-lieu parking spaces that don’t exist and likely never will!
Sounds like a “lose/lose” for both existing restaurants (and other businesses) and adjacent residents! Shouldn’t we support an appeal to the City Council to reverse this decision, if possible?
If you want to support an appeal, please contact me at [email protected].
Ralph Peck,
Del Mar
