HUNTINGTON BEACH : Residents to Protest Parking Meter Plan

Downtown residents say they plan to pack a town hall meeting Wednesday night to protest a city plan to install 850 parking meters in their neighborhoods near the beach.

James Smith, a resident on 12th Street who is spearheading the protest, said that about 2,700 residents have signed a petition protesting the plan.

He said that the parking meter fee amounts to a special tax “to fill city coffers.”

It would be unfair because it would single out downtown residents instead of being spread equally throughout the city, he said.

The City Council deferred action on the plan last month until residents could give their comments.

The town hall meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Michael E. Rodgers Senior Center, 1706 Orange Ave.

The residential parking plan seeks to discourage beach visitors from parking free in residential areas, forcing them to use beach parking lots and the parking structure on Main Street.

The city wants to put in meters from Pacific Coast Highway inland one block to Walnut Avenue, and from 5th Street to Golden West Street.

Residents could buy a parking permit for $5 a year per vehicle. They also would be able to get 72-hour passes for visitors at no charge.

First-year costs for implementing the program are estimated at $497,000. Revenue from the 850 meters is projected at $300,000 a year.

Mayor Grace Winchell said Monday that officials developed the plan to ease traffic congestion on local streets after some downtown residents complained that visitors were overwhelming their neighborhoods in search of free parking.

Winchell said it is true that meters will bring revenue to the city. However, she said, the primary goal of the plan is to alleviate the parking problem for residents, she said.

“We hope to dispel fears of the residents at the meeting,” she said, “but if they don’t want it (the parking meters) we won’t vote for it.”

The City Council is expected to vote on the matter Oct. 25.