NEWPORT BEACH : Employees Ask City for Parking Solution

If you’ve been having a tough time parking at the City Hall parking lot in Newport Beach, you’re not alone.

Actually, some 160 employees, plus visitors, have been trying to park in 75 City Hall spaces, and the problem has been increasingly frustrating for the workers.

The employees have formally asked the city to look into the problem, and the city hopes to have some solutions proposed in the coming month.

“It is quite obvious that City Hall is not providing enough parking for employees and visitors, and we believe that this problem needs to be considered serious,” stated Eileen Harrington, president of the Newport Beach Employees Assn. in a letter to City Council.

The biggest reason for the sudden parking problem has been the widening of Newport Boulevard, which has been under construction since last spring. The project eliminated about 50 meter and employee spaces.

The result has left many employees scrambling during breaks in the workday, trying a number of tricks to find a spot.

Many employees park in the city’s other lot, which is about a block away. Some park in spots reserved for the City Council and others have been parking in nearby metered spots on 32nd Street or at the supermarket lot that backs up to Via Lido.

When employees leave during the lunch hour, other employees move from less desirable metered or reserved spaces to their colleagues’ spaces. Lunch-goers return to find their space taken and need to vie for a new one.

The council has turned the matter over to a city committee.

Employees hope the city’s committee will come up with some solutions within a month, before contract negotiations begin between the city and the workers. The workers’ agreement with the city expires June 30.

Some solutions under consideration include assigning certain departments to the off-site lot, purchasing or renting new parking areas nearby and assigning visitors to a specific area.