City touts record revenue from surge parking pricing on Padres Opening Day

A new special event parking zone in downtown San Diego, meant to increase the amount of money generated for the city during big events in the Gaslamp, has done just that.

The city of San Diego said Friday the meters near Petco Park garnered more than $33,000 during the San Diego Padres’ first game of the season, a record since the city implemented a $10-an-hour parking rate during special events that draw crowds of 10,000 or more.

The city last September approved increasing parking meter rates in a 200-square-block zone around Petco Park. The changes, the city said, were meant to improve the management of on-street parking, “enable greater investment” in areas with meters, and to bring San Diego in line with parking fees in other major cities.

The move received immediate pushback from businesses in the Gaslamp and the San Diego Padres, who said in a statement that the decision was made with little input from their organization.

Groups representing downtown businesses, including the Downtown San Diego Partnership and San Diego’s chapter of the California Restaurant Association, said in a statement Thursday the parking fees were putting a damper on the excitement around Opening Day.

“Downtown’s vitality depends on it being easy to access for everyone. By increasing metered parking to as much as $10 per hour during special events, we are not inviting people Downtown with open arms — we are effectively greeting them with an entrance fee,” the statement read, in part.

The organizations said they have been in discussion about potential changes with the city. While some councilmembers have proposed rollbacks — reducing fees to $5 an hour, shortening the enforcement window and decreasing the area covered by the fee — no changes have taken effect by the start of the season.

The Special Event Zone, approved in June, applies to meters from State Street to 17th Street, between Broadway and Harbor Drive. The increased rates are in effect two hours before and four hours after the event’s scheduled start time. Drivers with a valid Disabled Person parking placard may continue to park at meters free of charge.

The decision to increase parking meter rates downtown came as the city worked to balance a $252.2 million budget deficit and alongside other controversial decisions like implementing paid parking lots and installing meters in and around Balboa Park.

The city said any fees must be reinvested into parking and mobility-related needs within the zone where they were collected.