Ocean Boulevard in Pacific Beach is congested for pedestrians and vehicles alike, especially during the peak summer season.
Ocean Boulevard is not currently part of the boardwalk, which stretches about 3 ½ miles from North Pacific Beach to South Mission Beach. But there’s a gap between Grand Avenue and Thomas Avenue where Ocean Boulevard remains a hybrid of pedestrian overflow and vehicle parking. Historically, this stretch has been a “car-first” section since the boardwalk was transformed decades ago.
Some residents say it has become so busy it’s no longer safe. They argue it’s time to close Ocean Boulevard to vehicles on busy days to improve pedestrian safety.
Others insist closing the boulevard isn’t justified, that closing it would only exacerbate a lack of public beach parking, and that proponents of partially closing the beach access to vehicles haven’t proven their case.
BeautifulPB, a grassroots nonprofit improving the community through arts, mobility, and green spaces, is advancing a pedestrianization project that could ultimately convert Ocean Boulevard into a boardwalk-style promenade.
BeautifulPB submitted a recommendation to the planning group to close Ocean Boulevard to vehicle traffic between Grand Avenue and Thomas Avenue during peak hours of pedestrian and bicycle traffic on weekends and holidays.
Pacific Beach’s Planning Group did just that in June in a 10-4 vote at a well-attended meeting.
David Cuthell, beautifulPB’s co-president, while arguing his group’s position, noted that, “Once upon a time, the entire boardwalk used to be car-free. But over time, the section between Thomas and Grand has become fully pedestrianized, with parking spaces remaining on the road.”
Pointing to data collected through beautifulPB’s annual PB Counts traffic tally of non-motorized versus motorized traffic in the community, Cuthell said results showed “73.7% of all traffic on Ocean Boulevard roadway consists of pedestrians and cyclists — not cars.”
He added, “This report presents quantitative evidence demonstrating that Ocean Boulevard already functions primarily as a pedestrian plaza space, and that vehicle traffic is minimal.”
Therefore, “beautifulPB’s community safety concerns warrant immediate action.”
Community activist Scott Chipman, who argued against beautifulPB’s pedestrianization proposal, laid out his rationale for opposing the proposal.
“This is a proposal from beautifulPB, which has a reputation for being anti-car. Their proposal for closing this area has been done with no study, no justification and no baseline data,” Chipman said. “There have been no injuries reported. We need more access and more parking near the beach – not less.”
Responding to arguments that there have been no serious accidents on Ocean Boulevard, Cuthell countered that you don’t want to wait until something like that happens, contending that data cites “near misses” in the area.
Henish Pulickal, a past planning group chair, had a different take from Cuthell and Chipman. “I support street closure anywhere we can get it,” he said. “Our streets aren’t safe; our sidewalks are disgusting. We have too much space dedicated to driving and parking in Pacific Beach. There is a sad amount of business turnover due to inadequate pedestrian traffic.
“We have a great beach and bay,” continued Pulickal. “But there are no open-air markets, walking promenades, no spaces like Santa Monica’s promenade. Creating a space like that would give better resident and visitor experiences. Instead of only vape, tattoo, massage parlors and gyms being the primary businesses in town, we could attract higher-end retailers and eateries. But it seems like our civic planners have entirely forgotten about this concept.”
Cuthell noted that getting the planning group’s seal of approval on pedestrianizing Ocean Boulevard is only the first step in a long process.
“Next, we need to go to the city and make sure this can be done in a way that doesn’t ruffle anybody’s feathers,” he said. “We need to figure out some of the logistics and details, do it in a way that would be most valuable to the public.”
Should the city close Ocean Boulevard to traffic?
