(FOX 5/KUSI) — The city of San Diego is considering charging to park at Balboa Park, which includes the parking lot at the San Diego Zoo.
“It’s a great place to bring the kids, let them run around, play with other kids,” Josh Plum said. He and his wife, Monica, pack up their two kids and visit the San Diego Zoo weekly.
But the Plums, like other San Diego families, may have to reconsider how often they visit if the city charges all visitors for parking.
“We’ll definitely have to factor that in, not its nice having the pass because you can come for 2 hours everyday and let the kids run around, but we wouldn’t be able to come as much if you have to pay 10 or 20 bucks, so that would be a bummer,” Plum said.
While most other attractions, including the San Diego Zoo Safari Park in Escondido, SeaWorld and Legoland, all require guests to pay for their parking, some locals would like to see an option for residents not to be required to pay.
Locals, including Erika Benavides, who flew into San Diego on Tuesday from Chicago, said she wouldn’t want to spend more money to visit the Zoo. “I don’t think it would be a good idea, it’s already a pricey amount to come into the zoo,” she said.
Those paying for the parking aren’t the only ones concerned; there’s worry that charging for parking could lead to fewer visitors to the 17 museums throughout Balboa Park, and dozens of cultural organizations.
“We don’t have pricing at this point, that’s something we are waiting on the city to advise,” Executive Director of the Balboa Park Cultural District Peter Comiskey said. “I will share with you though, that one of the things that concerns us the most is ensuring that guests from all throughout the region, as well as people coming to town, still come to the park.”
President and CEO of San Diego Air & Space Museum Jim Kidrick said he is concerned about fewer visitors as well.
“This is a no-brainer, there is no common sense being exercised here,” Kidrick said. “One thing that we should always ensure is that we have unfettered access to this crown jewel of San Diego.”
“There’s a lot to figure out there,” Stephen Whitburn, San Diego city council member, who represents the district that includes Balboa Park, said during Monday afternoon’s city council meeting.
“I am not going to rush to implement paid parking at Balboa Park or at the zoo, there are too many stakeholders and there’s too much complexity and it’s too important that we have to get it right,” Whitburn added. He said he also wants to make sure employees and volunteers are not impacted by the paid parking.
The city expects that once the paid parking program is up and running, it will bring in more than $2 million in revenue for the city.
The mayor’s office said they are still too early in the process to announce how much parking will be, how it will be enforced and when it could go into effect.
His office confirmed Tuesday that the issues “are actively being worked on across multiple departments (Parks, Facilities and Treasurer’s office) and the mayor’s advisor on transportation assets.”
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