Politics & Government
Discussion about Overnight Parking Districts Spurs Debate
Venice residents voice concerns about parking between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m.
Overnight parking districts were a hot topic of discussion at Tuesday's meeting of the Venice Neighborhood Council.
As part of a proposed Overnight Parking Districts settlement, OPDs would prevent any parking in designated areas between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. unless a permit is displayed. Some city parking lots would also open early to allow people to park and the installation of bike lanes would be accelerated. There would also be an increase of 351 additional parking spaces, according to Tamara Martin of the Los Angeles Department of Transportation.
Residents able to petition to get a two-thirds majority on their block would be allowed signs posted to ensure that residents and their guests who have permits could park between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m.
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"The use of the OPD tool is voluntary on a block by block basis," said Mark Saltzberg, vice president of the Venice Neighborhood Council.
The idea of overnight parking districts originally stemmed from concerns about recreational vehicles and campers being parked in neighborhoods.
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"For the councilman, it is a fairness issue," said Arturo Pina from Councilman Bill Rosendahl's office. "He has seen other cities on the coast get OPDs."
However, some said they thought the number of people parking during the early morning hours would be miniscule.
The Venice Neighborhood Council brought OPDs to the community for a vote four years ago in which 59 percent voted in favor of them, according to Mike Newhouse, the council's president emeritus.
OPDs have been denied twice by the California Coastal Commission, most recently in 2010 after which Mark Ryavec and the Venice Stakeholders Association filed a lawsuit.
After the meeting, Mark Ryavec, president of the Venice Stakeholders Association, said residents should be able to park as close to their homes as possible when they arrive home late at night.
"It's not just a parking issue," Ryavec said. "It's a public safety issue."
A hearing on the subject is scheduled to go before the California Coastal Commission in June.
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