FOUNTAIN VALLEY : Desperate Residents Get Parking Option

The City Council last week adopted an ordinance allowing residents to petition the city for permit parking in their neighborhoods.

During the past three years, the city has received letters and at least 20 phone calls from residents who want permit parking on their streets so outsiders won’t intrude into their neighborhoods, said Wayne Osborne, director of public works.

Residents have complained there are few places for them and their guests to park because high school students, people who live in apartment complexes and visitors to Mile Square Park park their cars in front of homes.

Osborne said the city’s most affected area is the south side of Slater Avenue between Los Alamos and Ward streets. He said homeowners there have complained to the city about residents from the apartment complex across the street parking in their neighborhoods.

“They come home at night and someone’s parked in front of their house,” Osborne said.

The reason people park on the street is that there are more cars than parking spaces in the apartment complex, Osborne said.

Under the new ordinance, residents with parking problems can petition the council for consideration of permit parking in their area. Osborne said that at least 75% of the residents in the area must support permit parking.

Osborne said it costs $2,000 to set up a permit parking district. The cost to residents would vary depending on the number of residences in the parking district, he said.

For example, if 50 homeowners are involved, the cost would be $40. The second year, the overall cost goes down to $1,000, and each resident would pay $20.

However, Mayor Laurann Cook said the city shouldn’t charge for setting up parking districts during the first six months of requests for permit parking.

“I really don’t want to impact the citizens of Fountain Valley with a fee. I’d like to see the program in place and see what the need is,” Cook said.

Councilman John Collins also recommended that instead of the proposed one-day guest parking permit, the city give homeowners permanent passes to keep for reuse by their guests.

Cook also suggested another change that would give each household a maximum of four parking permits instead of three permits as proposed by city staff.

The subject of permit parking goes back before the council on March 2, when changes proposed by council members will be considered.

Osborne said permit parking is intended to be a last resort.

“Permit parking in my opinion is a major inconvenience,” he said. “Property owners will only go along with it if they are really desperate.”