Carmel-by-the-sea looks to address parking shortage

CARMEL-BY-THE-SEA, Calif. (KION-TV) -- Parking around the highly visited city is limited, but finding a place to park in Carmel-by-the-Sea could be getting a little easier.

“We did find parking right away, first spot, so yes, it was good,” says Marsha Smith, who visits the city often.

Jenna Ogden, another tourist, with similar luck. “We just came off the freeway onto the main road and turned down one road, and there was a parking spot.”

“Along the way, we ended up losing about 40 parking spaces. So that was just enough to really create a problem for people, the workers, and for the visitors and for the residents.” Dale Byrne, Mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea, referencing a state law that prohibits cars from parking too close to intersections. 

During a city council meeting, officials discussed the loss of 45 parking spots in the downtown area, costing the city roughly $4.8 million a year. 

Martin Watson, owner of the Mad Dogs and Englishmen Bike Shop, says customers' first question is where can they park? 

“So it's very common for someone to rent a bike to go exploring for a whole day, and of course, they want peace of mind that wherever they've left their vehicle. They're not going to come back to a ticket,” he says.  

Watson adds that there is limited signage on where to go to find parking for extended periods of time. 

The city has considered shortening the 20-foot distance required by state law for cars parked near intersections. Doing this would result in slower speeds, yet may also lead to driver visibility issues. 

“We have stop signs at every single intersection, so when you and the blocks are short so our speed limit downtown is 25,” says Mayor Byrne. “We've done some traffic studies recently, traffic engineering studies, and cars are going 85th percentile.”

Meaning most drivers go 13 miles per hour. Mayor Byrne suggests a speed limit of 15 miles would keep safety on top of mind.