Carmel City Council votes to limit events during Monterey Car Week 2021

Monterey Car Week, which each year culminates with the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, has become a very big deal in the automotive community. Starting in 2021, however, it won’t be growing, at least not in Carmel.

According to vintagemotorsport.com, the combination of increased traffic, reckless driving incidents, and parking problems has prompted the Carmel City Council to ask city staffers to draft a policy that will limit the number of major events in the seaside town to two. The Carmel Pine Cone newspaper reported details of the meeting, which was held February 4.

The council, which voted 4–1 to move forward with the plan, is also considering a policy that would limit the size of Carmel’s Concours on the Avenue, held during Monterey Car Week. According to vintagemotorsport.com, councilman Jeff Baron spearheaded the idea of establishing a policy that would “limit the number of downtown events to two, beginning next year, and forbid new ones, prevent the current shows from expanding in size, determine if the city should regulate non-city events like Aston Martin at Sunset Center and the Carmel Mission Classic, define the length of the ‘week’—which now runs 10 days—and work with neighboring communities and the county on ways to mitigate the impacts events held outside the city limits have on the town.”

Carmel City staffers have been given a three-month deadline to draft the new policy.

Sean Jacobs, Senior Director of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, says his organization supports the city’s decision. He doesn’t expect the new policy to affect the Pebble Beach Tour, which includes Carmel.

“For over two decades, the city of Carmel has been a great partner… and we look forward to continuing that partnership,” Jacobs says. “At present we have no plans to expand the Tour, so we don’t foresee a negative impact on the Tour from the regulations being discussed. And we want to support Carmel in its efforts to protect its residents, its guests—and the unique and charming setting that makes it a perfect spot for our Tour participants and spectators.”