San Clemente, CA Public Conduct: Skateboarding Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- SCMC § 10.64.020
- Downtown ban zone
- 100-200 blocks Avenida del Mar, pier area
- Pedestrian clearance
- 3 feet minimum
- Distance from open storefronts
- 20 feet
- Speed limit
- 20 mph
- Hours allowed
- Daylight plus 30 min. after sunset
- Sidewalk streets
- Skateboarding barred if sidewalk present
Summary
San Clemente bans skateboarding outright on the streets and sidewalks of the Avenida del Mar business core and around the Municipal Pier under Municipal Code Section 10.64.020. Elsewhere, riders must stay off streets with an adjacent sidewalk, keep under 20 mph, and give pedestrians three feet of clearance.
A Except as provided in this section, no person shall use or operate a skateboard on a public or private street or alley in the City if there is a sidewalk adjacent and parallel to the street. If no such sidewalk is present, skateboards may be operated in the street as far on the right-hand side of the roadway as is practicable, in the same direction as traffic.B No person shall use or operate a skateboard on the street or sidewalk within the 100 to 200 blocks of Avenida del Mar, on the Municipal Pier, on the paved area at the base of the pier within three hundred (300) feet of either side of the pier ... H ... No person shall use or operate a skateboard at a speed in excess of twenty (20) miles per hour.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Traffic: Supplement 30 | Code of Ordinances: Supplement 66 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
64 covers skates and skateboards on all City streets, alleys and sidewalks, public or private, plus other City-owned property. 020(A) bars skateboarding on any street or alley that has a sidewalk running alongside it; where no sidewalk exists, boarders may use the street as far right as practicable and only in the direction of traffic. 020(B) creates a flat prohibition zone covering the 100 to 200 blocks of Avenida del Mar, the Municipal Pier itself, the paved area within 300 feet of either side of the pier, and Del Mar from El Camino Real to the pier base and Victoria between Corona Lane and the pier base, and lets the City Council designate further no-skateboarding streets by resolution.
020(C) requires any rider to pass a pedestrian with at least three feet of clearance, and to dismount and walk the board past the pedestrian if the space is too narrow to maintain that gap. 020(I) limits operation to daylight hours plus 30 minutes after sunset unless at a lighted, posted skate court. 040 add that posted no-skateboarding signs at school entrances or private property, including off-street parking lots, are independently enforceable.
Violations & Fines
Chapter 10.64's own citation section, 10.64.060, was repealed by Ordinance No. 1664 in 2018, so skateboarding violations are enforced under the general code violation provisions of Chapter 1.16 rather than a chapter-specific infraction clause. Riders using a designated skate court must still follow posted rules under Section 10.64.050, including a helmet, elbow pad and knee pad requirement enforced as an infraction referenced in that section's rules.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I skateboard on Avenida del Mar in San Clemente?
Is there a speed limit for skateboards in San Clemente?
How close can a skateboarder pass a pedestrian?
Can businesses ban skateboarding on their property?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in San Clemente
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