East Palo Alto has a parking problem. We have too many cars. In some neighborhoods, it is very hard to find parking. Many people have told me that they can’t invite their friends over because there is no street parking available.
I did a Facebook poll a few months ago and over 80% of respondents said that parking was an issue in their neighborhood. About 500 people responded to this poll on East Palo Alto Neighbors.
Something needs to be done. Past City Councils have not acted on this issue, despite the City studying parking at many community meetings, starting in 2017. I participated in these meetings, and took a few pictures.
A link to the mobility study can be found here:
COVID interrupted many things in EPA, including moving forward with addressing our parking issues. Parking is a huge quality of life issue in East Palo Alto, and the excessive number of cars hurts people in EPA who walk, bike, or skateboard/scooter around. Our streets are crowded, unsafe, and all of this leads to more traffic as parents rightly judge the streets unsafe for their kids to go to school on their own walking or biking.
The good news is that East Palo Alto is not the only city that suffers from parking issues. Donald Shoup, who passed away earlier this year, wrote a book that is considered the standard for parking reform.
I see the objectives of our Parking Program as straight forward:
• Remove excess cars from streets, including unused & broken down cars, boats, trailers, and other inoperable vehicles.
• Make it easy for people to find street parking for temporary visits, like visiting a friend’s home for a Saturday BBQ
• Make it fair and transparent for everyone
• Limit overnight street parking to residents of East Palo Alto, not vehicles from other nearby cities like Menlo Park and Palo Alto. This is a particular problem in neighborhoods adjacent to Menlo Park on the Westside.
• Remove commercial vehicles from parking overnight on streets in residential neighborhoods
• Make our streets safe for pedestrians and cyclists to get around town. This includes seniors and kids who do not drive, residents who live without cars, and people who choose to use a bike, e-bike, or scooter for transportation.
• Make it possible for EPA to build more housing, which will be impossible if we do not control parking on our streets.
Our parking issues will not be solved with just a permit parking program. We need to make sure that broken down cars are removed from our streets and driveways to clear up space for working registered vehicles. Code enforcement will play a big role in this effort, and Permit Parking alone will not solve our parking issues.
On July 8th, 2025 East Palo Alto City Council will have a second reading on our proposed Residential Permit Parking Program. This meeting will only put into our statutes the right of the council to regulate street parking. It will not include specific information on parking zones, pricing, or any of the really important details in implementing a permit parking program. Addressing our out of control street parking is an important step in making EPA more livable for everyone.
