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News from the City of Carlsbad | Dec. 4, 2025

New rules aimed at improving e-bike safety are on the way in Carlsbad after the City Council approved several changes this week, including setting a new minimum riding age of 12. These actions reflect our ongoing commitment to keeping everyone safe on our streets — whether you walk, bike or drive. Below, you’ll find more on the new measures, along with an update on our efforts to reduce homelessness and a proposal to add more parking in the Barrio.

Here's the full lineup:

• City Council approves new e-bike safety measures
• Annual report on efforts to reduce homelessness
• City Council to consider Barrio parking improvements
• Help care for Carlsbad’s trails on Dec. 10
• Holiday events to help you celebrate the season
• More community events and activities
• What’s on the agenda for your next City Council meeting

Carlsbad City Council approves new e-bike safety measures 

New e-bike safety measures are coming to Carlsbad, including a minimum age of 12 for riding e-bikes and rules to strengthen and clarify Carlsbad’s existing e-bike laws. The city will launch a 30-day public information campaign in the new year to raise awareness of the new laws before they go into effect in spring 2026.

After reviewing community input and recommendations from staff and the city’s Traffic Safety & Mobility Commission, the City Council voted Dec. 2 to move forward with the following e-bike safety measures:

• Adopt a minimum age of 12 to operate an e-bike, as allowed by Assembly Bill 2234
• Pursue legislation prohibiting riders under age 16 from transporting passengers
• Pursue legislation that would allow Carlsbad to join Assembly Bill 1778, a pilot program in Marin County that allows local agencies to require anyone riding a class 2, throttle-assisted e-bike to wear a bicycle helmet and prohibit anyone under age 16 from riding a class 2 e-bike
• Update the existing local e-bike law to clarify unsafe riding behavior, equipment requirements and the responsibilities of parents and guardians
• Prohibit e-bikes at Poinsettia and Pine Avenue Community Parks and authorize the City Manager to expand the restriction to other parks as needed, following review of community feedback and calls for service received
• Establish cost-recovery fees, as allowed under Assembly Bill 875, which individuals must pay to retrieve impounded e-bikes

Community input played an important role in this process. This fall, the city gathered more than 550 comments from community members, about 85% of whom expressed support for a minimum age of at least 12 for riding e-bikes. Thank you everyone who provided feedback!

Additionally, staff reviewed data on Police Department calls for service and e-bike collisions to inform the proposed safety measures.

Next steps

Staff will now develop the necessary ordinance for the City Council to review at a future meeting and pursue the appropriate state legislation to carry out the actions the City Council took at Tuesday's meeting.

The City Council also asked staff to gather more data on e-bike collisions that have occurred at night to evaluate an additional measure that could prohibit anyone under the age of 16 from riding an e-bike after dark. Staff will review this data and present the findings at a future City Council meeting.

More details on how the new laws will be rolled out will be available in the coming months. Sign up to receive email updates on the city’s traffic safety efforts.

You can view the staff report or watch a recording of the meeting for more details.

City making progress in efforts to reduce homelessness

The city is making steady progress in its efforts to reduce homelessness and its impact on the community, according to data presented to the City Council at Tuesday’s meeting.

Last fiscal year, July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025, the city:

• Transitioned 148 people experiencing homelessness into permanent housing, a 66% increase from the prior fiscal year.
• Prevented 122 at-risk individuals from becoming homeless, more than double the amount compared to the same period a year earlier.

In addition, police calls for service related to homelessness showed notable declines from the previous fiscal year: total calls dropped 44% and dispatched calls (those initiated by community members) were down 26%.

The city’s homeless response team presented the update as part of its annual report on the five-year Homelessness Action Plan. The city is now halfway through carrying out the plan, which outlines the programs, initiatives and performance measures guiding efforts to reduce homelessness and its impact on the community. This review helps the city assess its efforts.

Overall, the city provided services to 643 individuals, including 32 families and 63 children, over the past fiscal year.

All programs and initiatives outlined in the action plan are either completed or in progress, including three grant-funded outreach programs. These grant funded efforts are included in the proposed funding plan presented to the City Council for next year’s implementation of the Homelessness Action Plan.

If you’d like to stay updated on the city’s efforts to reduce homelessness, you can sign up for email updates.

City Council to consider Barrio parking improvements

On Tuesday, Dec. 9, the City Council will consider additional opportunities to add more on-street parking in the Barrio. This includes a proposal to convert existing parallel spaces to perpendicular parking on Chestnut Avenue east of Madison Street, in front of Pine Avenue Community Park, as well as direction to move forward with a broader parking study to identify other ways to increase parking in the area.

City Council meeting 

Tuesday, Dec. 9, 5 p.m. 

Council Chamber 

1200 Carlsbad Village Drive

Read the staff report 

How to participate 

Watch the livestream 

Provide comments in person or email clerk@carlsbadca.gov by 2 p.m. the day of the meeting 

What’s being considered 

On March 4, 2025, the City Council directed staff to assess additional parking opportunities along Madison Street and on Chestnut Avenue east of Madison Street. 

Staff have completed an initial parking analysis, and are recommending City Council approval for: 

• Adding four parking spaces by converting a portion of Chestnut Avenue east of Madison Street from parallel on-street parking to perpendicular parking, while minimizing impacts to existing landscaping, infrastructure and amenities. This would increase the total number of spaces along that stretch from five to nine. 

• Funding for a broader parking study to explore converting parallel parking to diagonal parking on wider streets, including Madison Street, Pine Avenue and Palm Avenue, to increase overall parking capacity.

The initial analysis of parking on Madison Street just north of Chestnut Avenue found that seven diagonal spaces could be added to that section, increasing total parking by two spaces. However, diagonal parking could create conflicts with the existing bike lane and cause confusion for drivers and cyclists since all other on-street parking nearby is parallel. For these safety reasons, staff are recommending to instead include Madison Street in a broader parking study to evaluate other options.

Continued focus on parking 

Parking in the Village and Barrio is a high priority, so last year city staff began evaluating areas where new spaces could be added. 

• Some ways to add parking include restriping, sign removal or repainting red curbs that no longer need to be red (think of a red curb near a driveway that is no longer being used). 
• This has resulted in 44 additional parking spaces in the Village and Barrio, with 22 added in the Barrio since January. 

Staff will continue to look at additional ways to add more on-street parking in the Village and Barrio. 

Help care for Carlsbad’s trails on Dec. 10

As more people get outside this time of year, our trail system benefits from a little extra care. If you’re looking for a meaningful way to spend time outdoors this season, join us for the next volunteer event on Wednesday, Dec. 10, at the Peninsula Trail. 

Volunteers will help with light trail surface improvements along the upper section of the Peninsula Trail, including leveling small uneven areas, adding light gravel where rutting or pooling often occurs and completing other routine maintenance.  

Trail volunteer event 

Wednesday, Dec. 10 

8:30 to 11 a.m. 

Peninsula Trail

Near 4015 Peninsula Drive

Know before you go 

• Park along Peninsula Drive and meet at the upper Peninsula Trailhead. 
• Please wear closed-toe shoes, gloves and other protective clothing. 
• City staff will provide a work plan, safety briefing, tools and water.  

Thank you to everyone who volunteers their time to help maintain the city’s 67 miles of trails. Your work supports safe recreation and protects the natural spaces our community enjoys year-round.

Holiday events to help you celebrate the season 

The holiday season is here and we're celebrating all month, including with these festive events coming up in the next several days. See a full list of our holiday events and activities on our website.

• Fixit Clinic: Sustainable Holidays – Saturday, Dec. 6, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Dove Library. Give reuse and repair a try at this hands-on event featuring seasonal crafts, Furoshiki fabric wrapping and holiday light strand recycling.
• Hula Holiday Program – Wednesday, Dec. 10, 1 to 2:15 p.m., Carlsbad Senior Center. Celebrate the season with the warmth of aloha as students of Hālau Hula ʻO Pualani present their 22nd annual Holiday Hōʻike. Seating is limited; doors open at 12:40 p.m.
• A Christmas Story movie showing – Thursday, Dec. 11, 1 to 2:30 p.m., Carlsbad Senior Center. Enjoy this classic holiday comedy about young Ralphie Parker and his quest for the perfect Christmas gift.

More community events and activities

If you’re looking for a break from the holiday rush, we have several other community events and activities happening at our city libraries, community centers and the Carlsbad Senior Center, including:

• Cinema Club Friday: "Small Things Like These" – Friday, Dec. 5, 4 p.m. and 7 p.m., Dove Library
• Tween Game Time – Monday, Dec. 8, 3:30 to 4:30 p.m., Georgina Cole Library
• Creative Crafting: Pine Cone Centerpiece (Adults 50+) – Friday, Dec. 5, 1 to 2 p.m., Carlsbad Senior Center
• Reel Wednesday: “Conviction” – Wednesday, Dec. 10, 4 p.m. and 7 p.m., Dove Library

Find more activities and information in our city calendar, the Senior Center’s Seaside Insider newsletter and our Winter Community Services Guide.

What’s on the agenda for your next City Council meeting 

The next City Council meeting will be on Tuesday, Dec. 9, starting at 5 p.m. in the City Council Chamber. Topics include:

• The annual report on the city’s capital project funds and special taxes, which is required by state law to show that the funds were used for the purposes they were intended
• Monthly update on how the city’s investments are performing
• Compensation plans for city employees not represented by labor associations and part-time city employees
• Renewing the agreement for the city’s Microsoft applications
• The annual report on the city’s Housing Trust Fund. The fund, generated primarily through developer fees, provides financial support for projects and programs to help people with lower incomes and in need of affordable housing
• Introducing an ordinance to install stop signs in all directions at the intersection of State Street and Laguna Drive
• Adopting the California Coastal Commission’s requested changes to the city’s rezoning program
• Options for the Kelly Drive and Park Drive Complete Street Improvements Project
• Opportunities to create additional parking spaces on Chestnut Avenue and Madison Street in the Barrio
• The City Council’s 2026 legislative platform. The platform specifies the city’s positions on potential state and federal legislation and other intergovernmental issues affecting the city and guides the city’s lobbying efforts to obtain funding and advance new laws that would benefit Carlsbad.

The agenda and staff reports are available on the city’s website.

3 easy ways to participate

1. Sign up to get agendas and staff reports emailed to you directly
2. Provide feedback via email to clerk@carlsbadca.gov by 2 p.m. the day of the meeting
3. Sign up to speak at the meeting

… and 3 ways to watch

1. Follow the meeting live on the city's website
2. Watch the meeting live on the city’s cable channel: Spectrum channel 24 or AT&T U-verse channel 99
3. Watch a recording of the meeting afterward (online or on our channel)

Several city boards and commissions are also scheduled to meet next week, including the Traffic Safety & Mobility Commission and Library Board of Trustees. Board and commission meetings are livestreamed on the city’s website and available to watch afterward. You can see the full meeting schedule on our city calendar.

Have a great weekend!

Geoff Patnoe

City Manager