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Santa Clarita City Council Adopts New Mayor, New Parking For Newhall

The Santa Clarita City Council came under new leadership at their Tuesday meeting, with Laurene Weste becoming the new Mayor for 2018; the council also adopted a new parking plan for Old Town Newhall.


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Mayor Laurene Weste

During Tuesday night’s Santa Clarita City Council meeting, a transition of mayoraliship occurred between then Mayor Pro Tem Laurene Weste and outgoing Mayor Cameron Smyth.

Flanked by loved ones and other community leaders, Weste took the oath of office for the fifth time since becoming a Santa Clarita city councilwoman.

Weste has served on the City Council since 1998, and has held the council’s leadership position for one-year-long periods in 2001, 2006, 2010 and 2014.

Related: Santa Clarita City Council Passes Moratorium Continuance On Marijuana Sales

“I am so honored to represent you and the council’s policy and goals,” said Weste. “Thank you so much, Santa Clarita. It is so awesome to serve you.”

Councilwoman Marsha McLean moved into the Mayor Pro Tem seat.

Councilmembers Bill Miranda, Weste and McLean are all up for reelection in 2018.

Old Town Newhall Parking

One of the most substantial ordinances discussed at the final Santa Clarita City Council meeting of the year involved the Old Town Newhall “Parking in Lieu” program.

At a Nov. 28 meeting, councilmembers had agreed to a second reading and accepting of the Main Street parking ordinance, which establishes that new and expanding businesses in Old Town Newhall are responsible for paying for new parking spaces based on the new square footage of their development.

Related: Old Town Newhall Parking Plan Expected To Be Adopted By City Council

The city ordinance dictating the “Parking in Lieu” program would recognize a ratio of one new parking space for every 350 feet of new development above 1,500 feet. The first 1,500 feet would require at least one parking space.

Each new parking spot demanded by this ratio will cost a business $5,855.10 per spot.

The council heard comments from business owners concerning the fee at the Dec. 3 meeting, but passed the ordinance this week without public comment or response from the council.

Adjournment Until Next Year

The Santa Clarita City Council has adjourned for the rest of 2017. They will next convene on January 9, 2018.

Related: Santa Clarita City Council Moves Forward With Amphitheater Study, Approves Condos At Tuesday Meeting

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Santa Clarita City Council Adopts New Mayor, New Parking For Newhall

3 comments

  1. goodness, why don’t we have elections… this council is full of “putz’s” starting with Weste

  2. Great article in the Santa Clarita Gazette (Issue 1004 – Dec. 8-14) this week by Alan Ferdman, called Always Advocating Alan. It explains how the current Council members have sold out the taxpayers of Santa Clarita on this hairbrained scheme called “Parking in Lieu”.
    Time to clean house and bring in some new blood to the City Council.

  3. Where is the new parking going to be, it’s such a small area?

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About Caleb Lunetta

Caleb has been a Santa Clarita resident for most of his life. After attending Hart High School, Caleb went on to study political science at the University of California, Santa Barbara along with College of the Canyons.