Downtown Manhattan Beach This Fall: When the Lot Beats the Meter, and Which Weekends to Walk

Since September 1, parking in a downtown Manhattan Beach lot costs less than parking at a downtown meter. The City Council's new rates took effect August 1. For the off-peak months of September through April they set downtown street parking at $3 an hour and cut downtown non-beach lots to $2, down from $2.50. The street spot in front of the shop you're visiting is now the expensive choice, and the lot a block uphill is the cheap one.

Through most of the fall, a quick trip to Metlox or Manhattan Avenue costs a dollar an hour less if you start in a lot. On a handful of dates, the City's event calendar closes the lots and streets closest to the Pier, and on those days walking or the Wave Rider is the better plan.

What an Hour Costs Downtown Now

The council approved two rate schedules in July: one for summer and one for the rest of the year.

Downtown lots are the only category that got cheaper than last year in the off-peak months. Every other downtown option either went up or stayed the same. The downtown business association's parking page lists enforcement from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., except the Pier beach lots, which it lists as enforced around the clock. If you're headed to the Pier after dinner, the beach lot will still charge you. The lots farther up the hill stop charging at 9.

The higher rates are expected to bring in $916,447 more in fiscal 2027. The City said that money will go toward operating costs, infrastructure needs, and future debt payments for replacing the Lot 3 parking structure. Part of every hour you pay downtown is going toward the garage that isn't there anymore.

The Garage That Came Down, and What Replaced It

The Lot 3 structure held 145 spaces and was demolished in November 2024. At a September 15 council meeting, City Traffic Engineer Erik Zandvliet said the City had found about 80 replacement spaces on nearby streets and built 69 more in the interim surface lot on the Lot 3 site. In his words, that leaves downtown "about five parking spaces more than we've ever had before."

The total supply is about the same as before, but it's spread across more locations. Some of the spaces that used to be stacked in one garage are now curb spaces at street rates. The surface lot itself sits at Morningside Drive and 12th Street and has two pay stations. The City's last detailed notice for that lot, from 2025, listed a 2-hour limit from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., a 3-hour limit from 6 to 9 p.m., and free parking after 9. That notice also listed a $2.50 rate, which the newer off-peak table has replaced. Check the time limits on the pay station signs before you count on a long dinner there.

Zandvliet also told the council that the City's parking study found downtown short about 150 spaces for current business needs, and short another 150 if existing parcels build out as far as the code allows.

"Somewhere between 150 and 300 parking spaces."

The cheap off-peak lot rate is there to spread a tight supply around, and it works best on ordinary weekdays and quiet weekends.

The Fall Dates That Close the Lots

On event days, the cheap lots nearest the water are the first ones to close. Here's the City and organizer calendar for the rest of 2026:

1. 36th Annual Pumpkin Race, Sunday, October 18. The free festival starts at noon at the Pier, and races begin at 2 p.m. Turbo Passes go on sale online October 5 at 6 a.m. for Manhattan Beach residents and October 12 for non-residents.
2. 38th Annual Family Halloween Carnival, Saturday, October 24. Runs 1 to 5 p.m. at Manhattan Heights Park, 1600 Manhattan Beach Boulevard. That's well east of downtown, so it doesn't compete with the Pier lots.
3. Pier Lighting and Holiday Open House, Wednesday, November 18. Runs 6 to 9 p.m. downtown and at the Pier, with the pier lighting at 7 and merchants open until 9. The organizers' 2026 schedule includes Santa and Mrs. Claus, cocoa and cookies, face painting and balloon art, music, carolers, live reindeer, and performers on Manhattan and Highland avenues.
4. North Manhattan Beach Holiday Stroll, Sunday, December 6. Runs 4 to 8 p.m. along Highland Avenue. The fee waiver for the Stroll is up for reconsideration on the council's October 6 agenda.
5. 38th Annual Skechers Manhattan Beach Holiday Fireworks, Sunday, December 13. The festival runs 3 to 8 p.m. at the Pier, with fireworks at 7. The organizer's parking and closure link is still labeled with 2025 information, so a 2026 parking plan hasn't been posted yet.

The City's closure list for the Pumpkin Race shows how far those closures reach. The Lower Pier lots close Saturday, October 17 at 6 a.m. and stay closed through Sunday at 10 p.m. The Upper Pier lots close Saturday at noon on the same schedule. Manhattan Beach Boulevard is closed from the Pier to Ocean Drive for that whole window. On Sunday only, the closures extend to Manhattan Beach Boulevard from Ocean Drive to Manhattan Avenue, 11th Place, and the 11th Street fire lane, all from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Ocean Drive closes from 10th Place to Center Place starting at 5 a.m. A few spaces close even earlier. Eight spots at the northeast end of the Lower North Pier Lot and six at the corners of the Upper South Pier Lot are blocked from Friday, October 16 at 6 a.m. until Monday morning.

The City's Pumpkin Race page doesn't mention a dedicated event shuttle or a remote parking lot. It points to the on-demand Wave Rider instead, which costs $5 a ride, or $2.50 for riders 55 and older, and runs noon to 8 p.m. on Sundays. If you live within walking distance of downtown, October 17 and 18 are the days to leave the car at home. If you're running regular errands near the Pier that weekend, do them Friday.

Across From Metlox, the Next Piece Is Moving

The off-peak rates explain how parking works today. The former U.S. Bank site at 400 Manhattan Beach Boulevard, which the City bought for $13 million last year, could change it next. At the September 15 meeting, the council chose not to spend $216,000 demolishing the bank building to make a 41-space lot. It directed staff to install payment kiosks and open the existing 26 spaces as paid public parking instead. Staff estimates that would bring in $243,000 to $275,000 a year. The council took no formal vote.

As of this writing, the City's parking page still describes those 26 spaces as temporary overflow parking for merchant-permit holders from Lot M, Lot 1, and Lot 2. No start date or rate for the kiosks has been published. Staff proposed moving the permit holders to Lot 7 off Valley Drive. Councilmember Steve Charelian answered that "Lot seven is packed," and Mayor Joe Franklin suggested asking Vons about its underused rear lot. The council is also scheduled to adopt Ordinance No. 26-0011 at its October 6 meeting. The ordinance rewrites the city's parking meter code and adds a new paid-parking chapter, but South Bay Tide reported that its full text wasn't in the agenda materials.

The long-range concept for the same site, part of what the City calls Project Pulse, could reach the quick-stop spaces many errands depend on. Gensler's preliminary design shows a two-story building with ground-floor retail and food space. It also proposes a pedestrian plaza on Morningside Drive between Manhattan Beach Boulevard and 11th Place, which retractable bollards would close for events. The plaza would remove the eight striped spaces on that block, five diagonal and three parallel. Councilmember Amy Howorth put it plainly: "Those are the parking spaces that you zip into. You go to Health Nut or Noah's or Peet's." Zandvliet said about six of the eight could be kept on most workdays, with a loading plan. The plaza is still under study, and the City plans to bring in a private development partner rather than build the project itself.

Where the Cheaper Hour Gets Spent

The off-peak lot rate pays off most on short trips to newer storefronts. Gum Tree, the downtown gift and home shop, moved to 1140 Highland Avenue on August 1 after losing its previous lease. Beyond Yoga opened at 324 Manhattan Beach Boulevard on August 13. Bacio di Latte opened at 451 Manhattan Beach Boulevard in June.

One Metlox opening is still pending. On June 24, the Planning Commission approved beer and wine service and an outdoor patio for Sogno Toscano, a Tuscan café, market, and wine bar planned for 451 Manhattan Beach Boulevard, Suite B102. The approved hours are 8:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. As of the July report, the café still needed its state ABC license and remaining City permits. We haven't found an opening date yet. Those approved hours run well past the 9 p.m. end of meter enforcement, so a late table there would mean free parking in the non-beach lots.

If you live near downtown and want to know how paid parking at 400 Manhattan Beach Boulevard or the Morningside plaza concept could affect your block, Lisa Potier follows these council decisions and can walk you through what's been decided and what hasn't. When you'd like to know where your home stands, start with a Free Home Valuation.