Yeah, you have to be careful, but if it is not posted, you will have a most likely have a good case if someone cuts your lock.

From San Diego City Code Ch14 Art2 Div5 Pg27 ( http://docs.sandiego.gov/municode/Mu...Division05.pdf )

(e) Bicycle Facilities
(1) The minimum number of required bicycle parking spaces is two.
(2) The maximum number of required bicycle parking spaces is 25. These spaces can be accommodated with racks for 25 bicycle spaces or racks for 12 spaces and 12 bicycle lockers if lockers are also required.
(3) The following uses are exempt from the bicycle facilities requirement:
Cemeteries, mausoleums, crematories;
Maintenance and repair uses;
Boarding kennels;
Pet grooming services;
Veterinary clinics and hospitals;
Vehicle and vehicular equipment sales and service uses; and
Mining and extractive industries

If anyone threatens to cut your lock, just ask where the bike parking is, and when they tell you there isn't any, threaten to report them for code violation. Be sure to read that whole thing-I had to- to make sure they are required to first).

I had a security guard threaten to cut my lock at the Kaiser Clinic in El Cajon, where I had gone to the pharmacy. I asked where the bike parking was, and he told me they didn't need any. (I had read the El Cajon City code on parking too, and knew differently.) He threatened to cut my lock, and I told him he would get in trouble if he did.

Later, I wrote a comment to Kaiser about the incident. Next time I went, I locked to the same flag pole, the same security guard was there and just looked daggers at me, but said nothing.