Outdoor dining in parking places created during the pandemic could be eliminated in beach areas under a new state mandate requiring restaurants to replace the displaced vehicular parking – or remove the outside seating.

In January 2022, the City instituted Spaces as Places, a new program to help COVID-challenged businesses by allowing them to put temporary outdoor dining spaces in the public right-of-way. The California Coastal Commission recently attached a condition that parking displaced by Spaces as Places must now be replaced, contending the public’s shoreline access was impeded by parking removal.

“Spaces as Places still needs to be certified by the Coastal Commission. Although a date has not been set yet, we expect it to be heard and certified at the Coastal Commission meeting in July,” said Perette Godwin, City communications program coordinator who added, “Applicants will need to demonstrate that replacement parking will be provided.”

What qualifies as replacement parking?

“Coastal Zone businesses will need to replace each on-street parking space removed for the construction of streetaries, active sidewalks, and promenades with off-street parking either on their premises or off-site,” answered Godwin.

The City spokesperson defined Coastal Zone businesses affected as those being in a Transit Priority Area (within a half mile of an existing or planned major public transit stop) that propose outdoor dining on private property.

Godwin said those businesses will need to replace each required parking space removed for outdoor dining if they are within the Beach Impact Area. “All required off-site replacement parking must be secured through a shared parking agreement,” she said. “Spaces must be replaced within 1,200 feet of the space that is being removed.”

Penalties for non-compliance with the Coastal Commission’s amendment to the Spaces As Places regulations will be issued in accordance with the San Diego Municipal Code by the Development Services Department’s Building and Land Use Enforcement (BLUE) Division. For easily correctable violations, an Administrative Citation may be issued. These citations’ penalties range from a warning to $1,000.

For violations that have a significant impact, or may need permits to achieve compliance, a Civil Penalty Notice and Order would typically be issued. These orders’ penalties are assessed on a daily basis and only collected in a hearing if the property remains in violation.

Reacting to the new Coastal Commission-directed state mandate on replacement parking, District 1 Councilmember Joe LaCava said: “A silver lining of the pandemic was embracing outdoor dining on our sidewalks and parking areas. The City Council’s acceptance of the Coastal Commission’s preference to preserve on-street parking provides certainty to beach restaurants despite facing additional obstacles. City staff is committed to maximizing outdoor dining, parking for retailers, and coastal access.”

“While Spaces as Places is expected to improve pedestrian-oriented amenities and promote alternate modes of transit, there are potential adverse impacts to public access associated with the program,” wrote the Coastal Commission in its executive summary requiring beach parking replacement. “Private cars and street parking are still the primary means by which the general public accesses the shoreline. Allowing the expansion of private structures and uses into areas currently reserved for public parking, could adversely impact the ability of the general public to access and enjoy the shoreline.”

The Coastal Commission pointed out it can take over 1 ½ hours to reach the coast from eastern San Diego, which is also where many of the lower-income communities of the City are located. “The occupation of public parking along the coast will likely have a deterrent effect on visitors living much farther away in light of transit time,” the Coastal Commission said. “Measures that limit coastal access for people who are not within walking distance disproportionately impact lower-income communities, which raises environmental justice concerns. Therefore, projects to remove parking in the Beach Impact Area ‘only’ must replace that parking elsewhere.”