LA MESA, Calif. (KGTV) — A proposed e-bike ordinance in La Mesa is facing growing pushback from parents who say electric bikes have become a necessity for families navigating traffic and limited parking across the city.

The hot button issue will be back on the agenda for city leaders on Tuesday.

The ordinance under consideration by the La Mesa City Council would ban e-bike riders under the age of 12. But after hearing concerns from parents at the previous meeting, some city leaders are now reconsidering whether the proposal targets the right group.

For Cassi Knight and her family, e-bikes have become an alternative to driving around La Mesa.

“E-bikes were our solution because parking down here has become so notoriously difficult,” Knight said.

Knight says her 10-year-old daughter completed a safety course before ever riding and that the family has placed strict limits on the bike itself.

“She’s 10 years old. We required that she took a safety course prior to ever getting on the thing,” Knight said. “We’ve throttled the bike. It cannot go any faster than 6 miles per hour.”

Still, under the proposed ordinance, her daughter would no longer be allowed to ride.

“We only ride as a family, but under this ordinance we’re now prohibited from doing that,” she said.

Parents also questioned how the city would enforce the restriction.

“There’s not a kid out there that carries a birth certificate or an ID,” said Deric Knight. “So what are they gonna do? Are they gonna profile the kids?”

On April 14, La Mesa councilmembers voted 5-0 to move forward with the ordinance proposal. But after receiving feedback from residents, the conversation shifted during the April 28 council meeting.

“And then all of a sudden we started receiving emails from families and parents,” said Councilwoman Laura Lothian.

At that same meeting, Vice Mayor Lauren Cazares expressed hesitation about the proposal in its current form.

“Do I think that this right now is the right ordinance? I don’t,” Cazares said. “I also would like to hear from more parents and more community members — on both sides.”

Lothian also reversed her original support for the proposal after hearing from families like the Knights.

“We realized that we had a problem with teenagers and e-bikes, and the solution wasn’t addressing the problem,” Lothian said. “I’m feeling like 9-, 10- and 11-year-olds are being scapegoats for the 14-, 15- and 16-year-olds that are actually doing the reckless riding.”

Now, city leaders say the next council meeting could play a major role in determining the future of the ordinance.

“I don’t know where, how it’s going to go,” Lothian said.

Ahead of Tuesday’s meeting, Lothian plans to hold a press conference at 10 a.m. encouraging more community members to share their opinions before councilmembers vote again.

“If you’re against the pilot program, come out and say something. If you’re for it, come out and say something,” Lothian said. “The persuasive people are going to have their day.”

For parents like Knight, the council’s willingness to revisit the issue is already making a difference.

“It shows that they actually care and that they’re actually listening and that they’re here to truly serve the city,” she said.