Pasadena to resume parking enforcement after Eaton fire

The city of Pasadena has announced it will resume parking enforcement nearly a month after the deadly Eaton fire began in Altadena, a San Gabriel Valley community located in the foothills just north of the city.

Parking enforcement was suspended during and after the fire, including street sweeping and overnight and preferential parking violations. The department began enforcement in business districts on Jan. 21.

Enforcement in the rest of the city will be phased in beginning Monday with street sweeping, oversized vehicle and 72-hour parking limits violations, the Pasadena Department of Transportation announced on its website.

Two weeks later, the city will again start enforcement in the preferential parking districts where streets require a permit. Overnight parking restrictions that limit parking between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m are set to restart on March 1.

Residents with reports of parking violations or inquiries about parking restrictions should call (626) 744-6440, the department said.

The Eaton fire ignited on Jan. 7 and quickly exploded in size — fanned by fierce Santa Ana wind gusts and critically low humidity rates that prompted the National Weather Service to issue its most severe fire weather warning. The fire tore a path of destruction through 14,021 acres in and around Altadena and Pasadena, razing more than 9,400 structures and claiming 17 lives.

Meanwhile, the city of Malibu has also begun gradually bringing back parking enforcement in recent days, primarily in areas that were not burned in the Palisades fire, which began on the same day as the Eaton fire. The Palisades fire burned 23,448 acres in Pacific Palisades, Topanga and Malibu, officials said. Over 6,800 structures were destroyed, including many residences and businesses along Pacific Coast Highway as well as homes in the hills above. At least 12 people were killed.

Susan Dueñas, Malibu’s director of public safety, said enforcement is focusing on violations that impact public safety, such as parking in front of a fire hydrant or blocking a driveway, and offering more warnings than tickets.

“We’re trying to be a little bit sensitive to the fact that the community has been through a lot,” said Dueñas. With Pacific Coast Highway reopening, however, visitors have started returning to Malibu and more enforcement is needed.

In burn areas, Dueñas said, they are doing minimal enforcement in order to limit violations that interfere with residents and businesses trying to get back on their feet.

“It’s a careful judgement call,” she said.