The days of free parking at Balboa Park are numbered after the San Diego City Council moved ahead with a proposal to implement parking passes come January. While there will be exceptions for volunteers and staff, they do not apply to thousands of active members of nonprofit organizations who call Balboa Park home.
“It’s going to be a new reality,” said Tom Derr, president of the San Diego Botanical Gardens Foundation.
Derr has been with the foundation for the last 15 years. He oversees 38 nonprofits that altogether have roughly 3,000 active members who meet at Balboa Park every month. But now that those members will have to pay for parking, some are considering moving their operations elsewhere.
“There are some that are actually looking,” Derr said. “That hurts, but hey, I’m all for them. They have to do what they have to do to survive.”
At Tuesday night’s city council meeting, councilmembers voted 6-3 to approve the plan to implement parking passes.
Paul Gunn, president of the San Diego Beekeeping Society, pleaded with city leaders to reconsider. His organization is one of the nonprofits considering leaving the park.
“We want free parking that protects local access,” Gunn said. “Please make it free for all of the participants of our educational nonprofits for all of the meetings for a validation system for in-person attendance. That’s all we ask for.”
The San Diego City Council passed a plan for paid parking passes at Balboa Park. NBC 7 political reporter Joey Safchik explains what this means for you.
The city of San Diego hopes to generate roughly $2.9 million in revenue for the 2026 fiscal year to bridge some of the remaining shortfall in the city’s budget. Derr is disappointed city leaders didn’t consider other avenues to generate that money.
“This is an interesting way of doing it, but it’s also going to reduce the number of people coming,” Derr said.
Derr said his foundation will meet with members of the nonprofits Thursday night to discuss next steps, including how many are planning on moving their operations. There are also discussions about potentially covering the parking costs for members. However, Derr said that’s not necessarily financially practical.
“Nobody’s paid. There is not one paid employee in our organization,” Derr said.
The city of San Diego is expected to launch an online portal in mid-December, where people can register for a parking pass. The price you pay will depend on whether you’re a city resident or visiting from out of town.