La Mesa, CA Parking Rules: Preferential Parking Districts (2026)

La Mesa Municipal Code Chapter 12.42 establishes permit parking under Section 12.42.010's stated intent: giving residents and their guests preferential parking privileges through a permit that exempts them from the chapter's prohibitions or restrictions, adopted by Ordinance 2547 on November 28, 1989. Section 12.42.020 defines a permit parking zone as a residential street or portion of a street the city council designates by resolution as a zone where parking is prohibited or time-limited, except that the property owner or lessee inside the zone may park a permitted vehicle there.

The traffic committee reviews every zone request against council-approved procedures and guidelines and forwards a recommendation to the city council under Section 12.42.040; the council may approve, modify, or reject that recommendation. Nonrefundable permit fees are set by council resolution under Section 12.42.050 to cover issuance and administration costs, and the city manager or a designee issues permits to residents, merchants, or merchants' employees under Section 12.42.060, each permit valid for up to one year and one vehicle only. Section 12.42.070 requires the issued decal to be displayed on the authorized vehicle, and Section 12.42.080 puts the city traffic engineer in charge of installing and maintaining the required signs.

Compliance is enforced under Section 12.42.090: once signs are posted, no one may park in the zone contrary to the signs unless the vehicle displays a valid permit or is actively loading or unloading passengers and goods. Section 12.42.100 is the master list of designated zones by street name, limits, and permit conditions, populated only as the council adopts each zone by resolution.