On Jan. 27, Morro Bay City Council voted 3-2 to approve paid parking for single-vehicle spaces at the boat launch ramp at the end of the Embarcadero, advancing a long-planned policy Mayor Carla Wixom said has been four years in the making.
“Paid parking at the launch ramp will increase space availability and reduce parking impacts from patrons who can park in other areas for free,” Harbor Vitality Director Chris Munson said in a staff report. “These include boating passengers who drive separately, boat owners parking more than one car, and day users who don’t have a preference regarding where they park.”
The decision expands paid parking beyond boat trailers to include 55 single-stall automobile spaces at the launch ramp. Paid parking for those spaces will begin March 1, using a license-plate-based system that allows drivers to pay at a kiosk, by text, or through a mobile app. The fee will be $5 for a 24-hour period.
During Tuesday’s meeting, Munson said the change is not a new proposal, noting that single stall paid parking has been included in the city’s Master Fee Schedule for several years but has never been enforced. He added that enforcement would help address ongoing misuse of the lot, including RV parking and long-term vehicle storage.
“Even just yesterday, I went down there, and many of the single-stall spots were taken,” Munson told the council. “There was about three RVs in spots. There was somebody doing car maintenance in one of the spots.”
Boat trailer parking at the launch ramp has been paid since 2010 and currently costs $12 per day, a rate that increased from $10 on Jan. 1. Munson said trailer parking generates more than $55,000 annually, while revenue from single-stall parking is conservatively estimated at about $5,500 per year.
A staff report said paid parking is intended to “provide additional revenue for the harbor fund” and help address maintenance needs that “require more funding than the harbor capital program can provide.”
As part of the approval, the council authorized one free annual parking pass for the first year for each permitted liveaboard vessel and commercial fishing launch slip. Annual passes for single-stall parking are currently priced at $175 but will be reduced to $83 beginning July 1, a rate staff said is “consistent with the proportional difference between the daily and annual pass for trailers.”
Tidelands Park, adjacent to the launch ramp, will remain free, though staff said it could be reevaluated if parking shifts significantly.
Councilmembers Jeff Eckles and Zara Landrum opposed the change, citing impacts to residents who use the area for walking, recreation, and daily activities.
“I think there are places for paid parking in the city, the Rock for instance,” Eckles said. “It’s where our tourists go to park for the most part.” He added that the Embarcadero parking area is used most by residents and that he was “stringently opposed” to the idea.
Resident Betty Winholtz also spoke against the plan during public comment, calling it “bogus” and said the launch ramp area is “part of the amenities of what we have to offer here.”
“I’m just dead against this,” she said. “I think it’s inappropriate that you charge people to park.”
Mayor Wixom, who voted in favor of the plan, emphasized that the program could be adjusted over time.
“This is a pilot project, nothing set in stone,” Wixom said at the meeting.
The parking program at the launch ramp will be a trial to see “what works and what doesn’t, for if and when parking at the Rock is ever implemented,” Munson told New Times in an email. ∆
This article appears in Jan 29 – Feb 5, 2026.