After a week of mounting concerns over parking fees in Balboa Park and museums reporting a decline in visits since the fees went into effect — more than 100 people gathered at the park Saturday to voice their frustration.
Local activists, residents and former mayors joined a rally at the Organ Pavilion in Balboa Park, holding signs that read “Greed Be Gone” and “Parks for People, Not Profit.” They say that the new fees could limit access to the park, including for families, lower-income individuals and park volunteers.
The event was the latest pushback against the city’s parking fees that launched on Jan. 5. New daily parking charges in Balboa Park range from $5 to $16 and $2.50 per hour for metered spots.
Earlier this week, Balboa Park museums said that the parking fees have led to visitor numbers declining by at least 20% or more since Jan. 5, and they called on the city to reconsider the parking fees or potentially eliminate them altogether.
In a new poll of San Diego residents, 80% say they want the parking fees in Balboa Park eliminated or reduced, with 69% saying the new fees will make them visit the park less often.
Surrounded by concerned citizens, Margaret Virissimo, a founding member of San Diego United Communities, speaks during a rally at the Organ Pavilion in Balboa Park, protesting the newly implemented parking fees at the park. (Howard Lipin / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)
“Over 150 years, this park has been a sanctuary,” said Margaret Virissimo, the founder of San Diego United Communities, the group that organized the rally. “But recently, city leadership has stopped looking at Balboa Park as a public treasure and started looking at it as a cash cow.”
Rally attendees said they worry about the long-term impacts of the parking fees and the ways that charging people to visit the park could affect the opportunity to learn about other cultures.
“(Balboa Park) is the place where you get to be exposed to things,” said Kim Pendergast, a Point Loma resident and volunteer at The Old Globe theater. “Even if you never left San Diego, you get to experience cultures, history, art … and also the variety of people that come here from all over the world.”
Jeremy Holley has lived in Chula Vista for about six years, and he said his visits to Balboa Park during the COVID-19 pandemic were “a savior” for his mental health.
Sara Rosenthal, who lives near Balboa Park, attended the rally at the Organ Pavilion in Balboa Park, protesting the newly implemented parking fees at the park. (Howard Lipin / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Under the new parking policy, non-city residents like Holley are required to pay a higher rate — as much as $16 for a full day of parking — compared to city residents, for which fees can be as high as $8 for all-day parking.
“It’s just disgusting that we are paywalling people,” Holley said at the rally. “It’s the principle, and it’s the fact that there are so many people here who can’t afford it.”
Paid parking in Balboa Park is expected to bring in about $3.7 million during the fiscal year that ends June 30. Revenue is expected to rise when the fees are in place for a full fiscal year.
Mayor Todd Gloria said the money is part of how the city is addressing its recurring deficits of more than $100 million per year.
After a rollout that sparked frustration and confusion, the city announced that it would not start enforcing the new fees for about a month as it made improvements to the system.
Surrounded by concerned citizens, Margaret Virissimo, a founding member of San Diego United Communities, speaks during a rally at the Organ Pavilion in Balboa Park, protesting the newly implemented parking fees at the park. (Howard Lipin / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)
On Saturday, the parking kiosks near the Organ Pavilion were operating, with several people paying to park. But earlier in the morning, a few people stood near the kiosks advising others that they did not yet need to pay.
Residents at the rally said the parking fees are just one additional financial hardship facing San Diegans, especially following the city’s new trash collection fee.
Trudy Seeley is a North Park resident who comes to Balboa Park twice a week to volunteer at the Model Railroad Museum and as a member of the San Diego Mineral & Gem Society. She worries about how the parking fees will impact other volunteers, especially seniors like herself who are on a fixed income and may not be able to afford the parking charges.
“The park is just for rich people now,” Seeley said. “That’s not right.”