Carlsbad approves $140,000 parking study and adopts Grand Avenue lane‑reduction/diagonal parking plan (one policy change passes 4–1)

The Carlsbad City Council voted to contract for a comprehensive parking study and to advance design for a striping project on Grand Avenue that will convert parallel parking to diagonal spaces and reduce westbound travel lanes from two to one in the project segment.

Council approved a staff resolution to contract with Avari Consulting for a parking study covering the village, barrio and beach neighborhoods. City staff described a scope of work that includes 12 quarterly surveys (three per quarter), intercept surveys in English and Spanish, stakeholder interviews and a future‑supply and occupancy analysis to project downtown demand under changing state rules and housing patterns. Mike Strong, the community development director, said the study will consolidate prior data, perform more robust year‑round monitoring and provide short‑ and long‑term recommendations.

The council also considered two related proposals for Grand Avenue between Tyler Street Alley and Jefferson Street: a design to convert the north‑side parallel parking to diagonal parking (net +11 spaces) and a separate council policy that would require staff to bring future lane‑reduction proposals to council with detailed design information. Traffic Engineer John Kim said the conversion would increase parking spaces and that the Traffic Safety and Mobility Commission supported the recommendation.

Public comment split on the Grand Avenue changes. Christine Davis of the Carlsbad Village Association said the business community supports both the road diet and the extra spaces and called the direction ‘‘transformative.’’ David Pierce, a resident, supported the road diet in principle but opposed adding spaces, citing bicycle safety and pointing the council to underused commercial lots nearby that could be better utilized.

On the two separate council actions, the first resolution (striping/design and budget transfer of $40,000 for design/permitting) passed unanimously. The second measure, a council policy clarifying that lane‑reduction proposals come to council and that the policy change would require four affirmative votes to adopt, passed 4–1; Mayor Pro Tem Patel cast the lone no vote expressing concern that a supermajority threshold could slow safety projects.

City staff said the scope of the parking study will begin with data collection this spring and that final recommendations will be presented to council next year. The Grand Avenue design work is expected to return to council for construction authorization in 2026.