San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria’s post-city-deficit, $10/hour parking meter fee hike drew a huge backlash from downtown San Diegans. Residents, businesses, the Gaslamp Quarter Association and the San Diego Padres have all decried new Special Event Parking Regulations.
Here’s The Sun’s report from August 7 about the steep hikes.
Gaslamp Quarter Association Executive Director Michael Trimble has said he felt blindsided by the city’s parking fee plan.
“This move ensures that the public is paying, quite literally, for the mismanagement of the city’s budget,” Trimble says. “…placing the burden almost exclusively on downtown businesses, residents and visitors is not fair, and it’s not the way to build trust and support.”
In a more recent response, Trimble wrote an open letter to Gloria’s office. It’s titled: Urgent Request to Address Parking Reform Rollout & Special Event Pricing Impacts Downtown. It reads, in it’s entirety:
Dear Mayor Gloria,
I am writing to express serious concerns on behalf of the Gaslamp Quarter Association regarding the upcoming parking reform rollout scheduled for September 1, 2025, and more specifically, the Special Event Parking Rate Zone that will impose a $10/hour rate two hours before and two hours after major events at Petco Park. While I understand the need to address the City’s budget challenges, this plan fails to account for the very real and immediate consequences to downtown’s workforce, residents, and business community.
In 2025, there are 18 remaining Padre’s home games and 16 special events at Petco Park that meet the threshold to trigger this pricing structure. In 2026, we anticipate a minimum of 81 home games and up to 10 large-scale events or concerts. That means nearly one-third of the calendar year could be subject to this surge pricing, is proportionately affecting downtown.
The designated Special Event Rate Zone is massive, stretching from Broadway to 18th Avenue, south to Harbor Drive, and west to State Street. This zone encompasses the entire Gaslamp Quarter, East Village, Marina District, and parts of surrounding neighborhoods. For businesses, employees, and residents within this zone, this policy poses both economic and safety concerns.
This plan grossly underestimates the effect on the downtown workforce. For hourly employees working during events, the cost of parking during a standard 4-hour Padres game, including the two-hour windows before and after, could exceed $60 per shift on the low end. This is simply unaffordable for many. Business owners are already reporting the loss of employees in anticipation of the September 1 rollout, as workers are beginning to look for jobs outside downtown where parking is not a barrier to employment. These are the very people who power our restaurants, retail stores, service businesses, and hotels, and they are being priced out of their livelihoods.
To avoid these exorbitant fees, many workers will be forced to park far from the downtown core, introducing new safety risks, particularly for those walking late at night after closing shifts that often end as late as 2 a.m. This is not an acceptable trade-off for budget balancing.
There are also operational concerns. Most downtown meters currently have a two-hour limit, and no plan has been shared to update or reprogram them in time for this rollout. That means visitors attending a game or concert could be forced to leave mid-event to re-feed the meter or risk receiving a citation, an experience that will frustrate and deter downtown visitors.
These increased costs associated with the surge pricing will discourage patrons from visiting the Gaslamp Quarter and East Village, especially during special events. A sudden spike in parking fees makes a night out in downtown less accessible and more financially burdensome for everyday San Diegans and visitors, directly undercutting the very businesses that rely on foot traffic to survive.
Even worse, this policy fails to incentivize fans to stay downtown after games. For those who might normally enjoy dinner, drinks, or entertainment after attending a Padres game, the extra parking cost creates a strong disincentive to linger downtown. Event producers and vendors who schedule programming during game nights will face financial strain as their guests weigh the cost of attendance, parking included.
It must also be said that this plan was developed and advanced with no stakeholder engagement. Neither the Gaslamp Quarter Association (GQA), the East Village Association (EVA), the San Diego Downtown Residents Group (SDDRG), nor the California Restaurant Association, San Diego Chapter (SDCRA) were not given any notice or opportunity to provide input. Even the San Diego Padres, whose events are the direct trigger for these rate changes, have publicly stated they were not informed in advance.
This surge pricing plan, and the broader parking reform package, threatens the long-term economic viability of small businesses, jeopardizes employment across the restaurant and lodging industries, and ignores the real-world challenges of operating in downtown San Diego. If left unaddressed, the result will be fewer employees, fewer visitors, and fewer businesses able to survive in the heart of the city.
We are not alone in our concern. The following businesses and community leaders have signed on in opposition to the Special Event Parking Rate Zone and stand united in urging your office to delay implementation and work with us toward a more equitable plan. Their support signals the urgency of this issue and reflects the shared frustration across industries, sectors, and neighborhoods.
• Sarah Mattinson, Chapter President, California Restaurant Association, San Diego Chapter
• Dominic LaMandri, Executive Director, East Village Association
• Gary Smith, President, San Diego Downtown Residents Group
• Hadeer Ascandar, Owner, Gaslamp Pizza, Chocolate, and Gaslamp Burger
• Howard Greenberg, President, Trilogy Real Estate Management
• Aron Langelier, Partner, Varant Group (representing Barleymash, Smoking Gun, Hasta Mañana, Spill the Beans)
• Joe Santos, GBOD Hospitality Group (representing El Chingon, Havana 1920, Meze Greek Fusion, Prohibition)
• Vania Raitano, President, Whiskey Girl & Double Deuce
• Sean Renard, Director of Operations, King’s Seafood Group (representing Lou & Mickey’s and Water Grill)
• Marsha Sewal and Catalina Preskill, Chairs, Land Use and Planning Group
• Rhianon Luna, Executive Director, Gaslamp Quarter Historical Foundation
• Sonya Sparks, President, Sparks Gallery
• Mark Buehler, Partner, American Junkie
• Juliana Ortiz, Owner, Cali Cream Ice Cream
• Josefine Jardinger, Owner (representing The Shout! House and Garage Kitchen + Bar)
• Surinder Singh, Owner, Urban India
• Rod Razooky, Owner, Cuban Cigar Factory
• Stacy Drayne, Owner (representing The Field Irish Pub)
• Tim Jackson, Owner, Urban Lighting
• Joclyn Terry, Owner, Deringer Salon
As Executive Director of the Gaslamp Quarter Association, I represent and speak on behalf of nearly 400 member businesses. Together with our neighbors in East Village, we stand united in saying this is not how the City of San Diego should treat its business community. I have no faith that your office will act on this request in good faith. For that reason, this letter has not only been delivered to your office, but it has also been distributed to every major media outlet in San Diego.
This is not an issue that will fade quietly. Our merchants, our workforce, and our visitors deserve transparency and leadership, not last-minute rollouts and blanket policies that risk harming the very community that fuels downtown’s economy. There is still time to meet with us before this policy takes effect. We remain willing to collaborate, but we will not sit silently while our small businesses shoulder the weight of the City’s budget crisis alone. The lack of transparency and outreach is unacceptable and
undermines community trust.
Best regards,
Michael Trimble
Executive Director
Gaslamp Quarter Association
SDSun
