East Palo Alto residents deserve a fair residential parking program

East Palo Alto has long distinguished itself as a city that prioritizes community engagement and collective well-being. Our residents have consistently come together to support one another, particularly our most vulnerable neighbors. As a community of predominantly low-income, multigenerational families, we understand the importance of shared resources, mutual support, and having a real voice in the decisions that shape our daily lives.

Over the years, the people of East Palo Alto have fought to be heard, and past city councils made it a priority to ensure that community input was not only welcomed, but meaningfully reflected in policy. Together, we’ve successfully advocated for affordable housing, youth resources, and economic opportunities that serve the whole community.

Today, we face a new challenge. This time not from outside developers or regional pressures, but from within our own city government. The issue is the proposed Residential Parking Permit (RPP) program. While the RPP is designed to address parking congestion, the recent changes to the program raise serious concerns. As currently written, the revised RPP would place an undue financial burden on working families and limit community input, disproportionately affecting the households that have made East Palo Alto the vibrant community it is. If implemented without meaningful revisions, the RPP risks undoing years of progress toward more inclusive, community-driven policymaking.

The original version for the RPP program included two key protections: each household would receive one free parking permit, and implementation in any neighborhood would only proceed if at least 67% of residents supported it. These provisions ensured that the program would be both equitable and community-driven.

In the current draft, both of these protections have been removed. There is now no guarantee of one free permit per household. This leaves working families and multigenerational households facing the risk of new parking fees simply to continue living as they always have. In a community where many already struggle with the rising cost of living, this change adds an unnecessary burden.

The revised program eliminates the requirement for community approval entirely. Under the current version, no surveys are required and no formal neighborhood vote is needed. The City Council can now designate RPP zones without local support, and without even gauging public sentiment. This is a profound shift from the original promise of a community-led process, and it undermines East Palo Alto’s legacy of participatory governance.

The original framework allowed communities to opt out if the program no longer served their needs. That accountability measure has been stripped away, meaning neighborhoods could be permanently locked into a program they neither requested nor approved.

What was once a collaborative policy has become a top-down mandate, one that disregards local input, increases financial pressure, and leaves residents with no meaningful way to contest or undo its effects.

We don’t need a one-size-fits-all approach created without our input. What we need are thoughtful, equitable solutions that truly reflect the experiences of East Palo Alto families. The current council must learn from the past and recognize that our city has a strong tradition of engaging with its community. While it may take time to address issues, this slower pace reflects the value previous councils placed on community engagement. We must come together, organize, and ensure our voices are heard as we work with the new council. Anything less is unacceptable. As it stands, the RPP falls short of meeting these standards.

This is our neighborhood. Let’s fight to keep it ours.

If you believe in fairness, want a say in decisions that impact your daily life, and think community should come before bureaucracy, we urge you to sign our petition. To learn more and take action, follow @ravneel4EPA on Instagram or Facebook, or reach out directly at ravneel4EPA@gmail.com.

Ravneel Chaudhary is a longtime East Palo Alto resident and community organizer advocating for equitable, community-led policies that center the voices of working families. 

 ***********************

Please click on the box below and make a donation. Whatever amount you give will enable us to "Keep Community Media Alive!"