COSTA MESA – Cyclists in Costa Mesa will soon have to watch where they lean their bikes.

The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to approve an ordinance that will ban the parking and locking of bicycles on public property.

The ordinance is part of the city’s Homeless Task Force and the group’s look into quality-of-life issues for residents. The task force, created in January 2011 to address a large homeless population in Lions Park, has since removed a railing and picnic structure at the park where many homeless locked their belongings.

The city has had numerous complaints about bicycles attached to poles, fire hydrants, bus and park benches around the city, often blocking walkways at city parks or in the street, said Costa Mesa police Sgt. Victor Bakkila.

Bike thefts also increased by 68 percent during the first five months of 2012, compared to the same period of time last year, he said.

The ordinance would limit the parking and locking of bikes at public facilities and properties to bike racks and prohibit parking in places which obstruct the public’s right-of-way. On private properties, it’s up to the property owner to determine how bikes can be parked or whether police can enforce the ordinance.

Improperly parked bikes could be impounded and claimed for up to 90 days, after which the city would sell any unclaimed bicycles.

Newport Beach, Huntington Beach and Irvine have similar ordinances regulating abandoned bikes and bike parking, according to the city staff report.

A few residents expressed concern to the council that the ordinance is too broadly written.

“It has so much discretion in the way that it has allowed enforcement to be done that it is almost certainly going to look as an attack on the homeless,” said resident Sheila Pfafflin. “I would really urge you to make this…a much more narrow ordinance limited to the things you really need to address.”

Neighborhood Improvement Manager Muriel Ullman, a member of the task force, said the ordinance would be enforced within reason. For example, if nearby bike racks are all full, then police would not enforce the ordinance.

“If the police see there is an open rack, and they sees some bikes lying on the grass…they’re not just going to go impound the bike, they’re going to work with the people,” Ullman said.

According to the staff report, the city’s 30 parks have only 38 bike parking spaces total. The city is applying for a grant to purchase additional bike racks, money that could be available as soon as this month. Until then, the police will enforce the rule on a timeline consistent with the installation of new racks.

Councilman Steve Mensinger proposed putting revenue from impounded bike sales back toward local schools. Mensinger also suggested posting images of the impounded bikes online, to facilitate the claims process.

Ullman also noted at the meeting that the task force is working on an abandoned property ordinance to address other belongings left in public spaces. Currently, the task force is attempting to address the problem by working with a local church to maintain the Check-in Center, a free storage facility where the homeless can lock up their belongings.