Merchants Want Skaters Brought in Line With City’s Sidewalk Ban

Merchants and police are livid that the City Council, without warning, exempted in-line skates from a recent ordinance banning skateboards and bicycles from sidewalks in the downtown area.

They plan to vent their frustration Monday and ask council members to return in-line skating, often called Roller Blading, to the list of forbidden activities.

“I want them to listen to what the merchants and the police worked out for what we believe is right for downtown,” said Diane Neveu, owner of Book Mall of Ventura on Main Street. “It really makes me angry.”

Police and business owners say skateboarding, bicycling and in-line skating on sidewalks in the newly renovated downtown corridor have resulted in property damage and near-collisions with pedestrians.

Two weeks ago, council members unanimously agreed to prohibit such activities on sidewalks within an eight-block section of downtown stretching from Poli Street to Harbor Boulevard and from Ash Street to Ventura Avenue.

But in a surprise move last week, Councilman Ray Di Guilio suggested altering the ordinance to exempt in-line skaters, whom he said were not contributing to the problem.

He suggested that the policy be amended to allow roller and in-line skating at “walking speeds.” The council voted 4 to 2 to amend the policy. Mayor Jack Tingstrom and Councilman Jim Friedman cast dissenting votes.

The action shocked police and downtown business owners who helped develop the ordinance.

“I was surprised that Councilman Di Guilio brought it up because we had discussed that aspect of the ordinance before,” said Tim O’Neil, president of the Downtown Ventura Assn. “There was strong objection to having an exception for the roller skates and Roller Blades.”

Officer Terri Vujea, who spent 10 months researching ordinances adopted by other beach cities, also said the action came as a surprise.

“It upsets me,” she said. “They didn’t come to the people who studied the ordinance. It’s not the outcome, it is how it happened.”

Di Guilio said Friday that he had no idea his proposal would rile so many people. He simply wanted to craft the least restrictive ordinance possible, he said.

“I think the Downtown Ventura Assn. has some legitimate concerns about safety,” Di Guilio said. But he added that he has some legitimate concerns about punishing people who are not causing the problem.

“It is not a no-skating ordinance,” he said. “It is a pedestrian-safe zone. To me, pedestrian-safe means if someone is on skates going as slow as someone walking, it is safe.”

The City Council is scheduled to discuss the ordinance again Monday night and decide whether to approve the original sidewalk ban or the revised regulation without skates.

The council received a report by Police Chief Richard Thomas on Friday detailing the Police Department’s experience with in-line skaters and the feasibility of skating at walking speeds.

The report said that no collisions have been documented between pedestrians and in-line skaters. But it also said that since downtown Ventura is set on a hill, it would be “nearly impossible for an in-line skater to maintain a speed close to that of a walking pedestrian.”

Councilman Jim Friedman said that conclusion is reason alone for the council to stick with the original ordinance.

“If you stand outside Sandy Smith’s restaurant and drop a marble,” Friedman said of the Rosarito Beach Cafe at Main and Fir streets, “it will roll all the way to the mission.”

“The watered-down ordinance,” he continued, “is a direct slap in the face to downtown merchants and police who worked for 10 months to draft an enforceable law.”