["Let Inga Tell You," La Jolla Light, published February 16, 2026] 2026
With the risk of sounding like an irascible curmudgeon, how soon can we evict the idiots on the San Diego City Council?
I am actually a life-long Democrat and I voted for those idiots. But I am despairing that they can make any good decisions anymore, especially where parking is concerned. Our City Council persons have excelled at conjuring up new and creative ways to make a dire parking situation in San Diego even worse and more expensive. It's clearly a gift.
I'm especially referring to you, Joe LaCava. I've been (past tense) a fan for decades. The La Jolla Light keeps editing out my comments about him. I'm allowed to say that I wish he could be relegated to a desert island, but not what I hope happens when he gets there. Joe, we expected so much more from you!
Back in 2021, the City Council took what they deemed the "bold" step of wiping out requirements for businesses in areas near mass transit to have any parking spaces.
Were they also wiping out any requirements for business?
Meanwhile, every time I read about new legislation that reduces or eliminates parking requirements for new residential or commercial construction, I want to tear my hair out. Also the hair of the City Council persons who voted for it.
The two-part message from our governing bodies seems to be: (1) By eliminating parking, people will use public transit. (2) By "people," they mean persons other than themselves.
I've written about this before, but I wish that every single person on the City Council and their families were required to use only public transit for an entire month. That means going to work, getting the kids to school and sport practices, the dog to the vet, making medical appointments on time, etc. etc. I'm a huge fan of public transit (we never had a car when we lived in Sweden) but this city isn't set up for it. Expecting people to walk a half mile from a transit station to home with kids and groceries is a non-starter.
Meanwhile, the "daylighting" law that went into effect January 1, 2025 prohibits parking within twenty feet of an intersection with the aim of boosting visibility for drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists. This applies even if the curb is not marked or in the absence of No Parking signs. The tickets are a whopping $117. The law defacto removed hundreds of parking places in hard-to-park areas. Months into 2025, only 400 of the city s affected 16,000 intersections had had the curbs painted red. Which is how the city managed to issue 6,133 tickets and generate over $660,000 in revenue just between March 1, 2025 (when the new law became enforced) and the end of May of that year. The city, of course, is gleefully happy at this fortuitous windfall which is a testament to how truly unclear the law is and how difficult it is on many blocks to estimate the exact twenty feet. Meanwhile some 6,133 people returned to their cars from an eight-hour work shift or a nice lunch to find themselves $117 poorer.
But the new parking fees at Balboa Park are a whole new level of stupid. Anyone - well, except for City Council persons - could have predicted that charging for parking in Balboa Park would severely impact the museums, restaurants, Old Globe Theater, club meetings, dog walkers, and just general picnickers. And surprise! That's exactly what happened.
The outcry was so predictable. Balboa Park is a cherished San Diego institution, a sacred cow, if you will. Do not mess with the cow, er, park!
Every effort the City Council has made to backtrack/ameliorate the situation has just made it worse. First of all, those ticket machines where you pay are apparently seriously user-hostile. That alone would keep me from ever going there again. I have the techno frustration tolerance of a gnat.
By the time this column sees print, the new parking fee rules will probably have changed yet again. The most recent placating revision is going to give a discount to residents of the city but you have to apply on-line (sorry poor people without a computer!), pay a one-time fee of $5 to verify your residency (which requires a driver's license, vehicle registration, or utility bill) and also enter your vehicle's license plate number. Um, what if your residence has multiple vehicles?
This process takes up to two days, and the San Diego Union-Tribune (2/7/26) says you have to choose the day of your visit in advance. It's unclear how, even after you have paid that fee, you get a discount in future visits when you come to the park and are confronted with the ticket machines. Inquiring minds, even if they are never intending to come to the park again, would like to know.
Are these ticket machines programmed to know who are verified residents?
Just to make sure no one understands the system, the various parking lots have been designated Level 1 (i.e. nearest to anything you'd actually want to go to), Level 2, and Level 3 (a.k.a Siberia) with different rates for both residents and non-residents at each.
Level 1 rates are $8/day or $5 for four hours for verified residents, and $16/day or $10 for four hours for non-residents. Level 2 rates are $5/day for verified residents and $10/day for non-residents. Level 3 rates are first 3 hours free and then $5 for verified residents, and first three hours free then $10/day for non-residents.
In response to push-back from the citizenry, the City Council has managed to change the enforcement period to end at 6 p.m. (from the original 8 p.m.) to accommodate theater and restaurant go-ers. It should never have been 8 p.m. They have also, allegedly, backed off from paid beach parking. At least for the time being.
My parents taught me when I was approximately five that if you've made a mistake, admit it and try to fix it. If it were up to me, the City Council would be enjoined from making any regulations whatsoever regarding parking because whatever they decide is guaranteed to be a total goat f--k, er, epic fail. There s enough going on in this country that we shouldn't have to be spending our energy fighting our own local government.
City Council: admit that you blew this one. Repeal it.
