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Parking in certain areas of Orange County could soon be more difficult for drivers while pedestrians might be able to cross streets more safely in those same places.
It comes as some Orange County cities are beginning to mull over how to tackle a new state parking law aimed at making streets safer for pedestrians.
The law took effect in January 2024, but allowed for a one-year grace period.
Now, people may start seeing fines for parking within 20 feet of street corners as a new state law – AB 413 – prohibits motorists from parking too close to any unmarked crosswalk or intersection.
But it’s a mishmash approach with little public outreach so far.
Last month, Seal Beach city officials laid the groundwork to start enforcing California’s new parking law, approving an ordinance to establish a city fine on motorists parking within 20 feet of crosswalks and intersections.
A majority of states in the U.S. have implemented laws prohibiting parking on crosswalks or curb extensions, commonly known as daylighting, according to the California Bicycle Coalition.
While the law allows for enforcement starting at the beginning of this year, some city leaders across the Golden State opted for more public outreach efforts instead.
Cities like San Diego, San Francisco and Lodi passed resolutions that called for an extension of the state’s daylighting laws in order to educate people and provide warnings to residents.
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency announced last month that only citations will be given at intersections that are already painted red, allowing people more time to become acclimated with the updated regulations.
Now, city officials in Orange County are figuring out how to best tackle enforcing a new state law that has little public awareness.
Natalie Garcia, Santa Ana Police Department’s public information officer, said in an email last Tuesday that residents are receiving verbal warnings rather than facing citations, adding that “a date to begin enforcement has not been determined as of yet.”
This comes as Santa Ana has been struggling with parking enforcement downtown – with the city officials warning their contracted parking officers against enforcing non-parking infractions like missing license plates or expired registration.
[Read: Are Santa Ana’s Contracted Parking Officers Giving Too Many Tickets?]
It’s also unclear what’s happening in Anaheim as spokespeople didn’t respond to questions about the new parking law.
As of Tuesday, Anaheim City Council members haven’t had a public discussion about the new parking laws.
In Irvine, Sgt. Karie Davies said the police department has issued 8 citations since the start of the year. She added that the department has posted notices on social media about enforcing daylighting laws “so the public was aware of the law and is now enforceable.”
Fullerton Mayor Fred Jung, also a board member on the Orange County Transit Authority, said the new state law makes sense in regions like Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego.
But not in Orange County, he said.
Jung also said individual cities need more time to properly educate residents on the new parking laws that could be “incredibly difficult to enforce.”
“You can’t enforce something without informing the public,” Jung said in a phone interview, adding that public outreach is going to take more than a post on a city’s website.
He added that residents living in areas where parking is already tight – including low-income neighborhoods and congested apartment complexes – are more impacted.
Tackling Parking in Seal Beach
For some city officials, tackling the state’s new parking law is about managing the city’s budget.
On Feb. 24., Seal Beach City Council approved roughly $220,000 in IT upgrades to the city’s police department for better enforcement of parking violations.
It’s happening in a city where voters just passed a half-cent sales tax hike in November to help patch a $6 million budget deficit.
[Read: Seal Beach Voters to Decide on Sales Tax Increase to Curb $6 Million Deficit]
Earlier in the month during the Feb. 10 city council meeting, Seal Beach City Council members raised concerns about how the new state law will ultimately impact residents.
Seal Beach Police Captain Nick Nicholas said “there is no clear cut way” to enforce daylighting laws, but noted there is a cost to have police officers focus on parking enforcement.
The fine for parking too close to a crosswalk or curb extension in Seal Beach is $56.
He later added that the new law will likely remove roughly 300 parking spaces in places like Old Town Seal Beach, an area that already has limited parking spaces.
For Councilmember Nathan Steele, losing parking spots while also penalizing people for parking is an issue.
“It’s a warzone for parking in Old Town already,” he said. “Are we going to charge those people $56 bucks? I hope not.”
[Read: Here’s Where OC Voters Stand on Sales Tax Increases in 2024]
Some council members, including Councilman Joe Kalmick and Councilwoman Patty Senecal, said officials should consider adding signs or painting city curbs red to make it more clear for drivers.
But at the same meeting, Public Works Director Iris Lee said “we do have to take into consideration that signing and striping is not free,” adding that “it is a burden to our taxpayers.”
Battle For Transparency in Costa Mesa
In January, Costa Mesa’s Police Department released a statement on their Instagram account about future enforcement of the state law.
But until advocates voiced concerns at last month’s meeting, city council members hadn’t publicly said much about the new daylighting laws.
“People want to feel safe in the community, but they want the city to communicate about public safety,” said Marc Vukcevich, a board member for the Costa Mesa Alliance for Better Streets, during a Feb. 4 city council meeting.
Vukcevich – who is also a director of state policy for Streets for All, a group advocating for transportation and public land use – was part of the coalition that publicly supported the new parking law.
Councilmember Arlis Reynolds said that it’s “unfair to immediately ticket people when there’s not a lot of awareness about the law.”
She added that the city should make it easy to identify areas that are safe for parking, either by painting curbs red or placing physical markers near crosswalks.
Echoing his colleague, Mayor John Stephens – also a board member on the OC Transportation Authority – said he would prefer the city’s police department to give warnings and provide education before enforcing daylighting laws.
Since the meeting, Costa Mesa has posted videos on its YouTube channel educating on the new daylighting laws.
Public information officer Tony Dodero did not respond to request for comment on whether Costa Mesa is considering a policy to add signage or paint street curbs for city streets, or if the city’s currently enforcing the parking law.
Social media posts from the city indicate officials began enforcing the law March 1.
Hugo Rios is a Voice of OC reporting fellow. Contact him at hugo.toni.rios@gmail.com or on Twitter @hugoriosss.
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