York Beach parking meters may get more expensive
YORK, Maine — Parking meter prices are likely to increase in York next year as town officials and Ellis Park’s board of directors look to generate more revenue.
It currently costs $2 an hour to park at any metered space in York, including those overseen by the town and the Ellis Park board of directors. Town officials say that price is far lower than similar communities like Ogunquit, where in-season meters are as high as $6 per hour.
“I’m not saying five or six (dollars) is the right number,” Town Manager Peter Joseph said at the Oct. 23 Selectboard meeting. “But we should at least explore it.”
The issue of raising parking meter prices came up in discussion with the Ellis Park directors who oversee the park at Short Sands Beach, its finances and its parking revenue separate from the town. They said capital projects like a new parking lot and playground are expected to drain 20% of their $1 million fund, which is less than “comfortable,” chairman David Bridges said.
When it was suggested by Joseph they consider raising their parking rates, the directors said they would do so but only if the town matched their increase as well. Now, town officials are preparing to examine whether to increase parking this winter, potentially in time for the 2024 season.
Joseph said a change could be made by a Selectboard vote to amend the town’s parking ordinance. Selectboard Chair Todd Frederick said such a vote would need to be made before the town clerk sends out parking stickers to residents.
“It would be something in the first quarter,” Frederick said. “If that’s what the other members want to do.”
York parking compared to other communities
Parking rates have increased in coastal Maine towns in recent years.
Old Orchard Beach raised their rate from $2 per hour to $3 per hour in 2021, according to the Saco Bay News. The Town Council discussed going to $4 per hour last year, according to meeting minutes, but has not voted to do so yet.
Other communities near York with higher rates include the municipal lot in Kennebunkport, which charges $3 per hour from Memorial Day to Columbus Day.
Portsmouth charges $2 per hour for the first three hours, then raises it to $5 for the rest of the time parked. A separate zone in Portsmouth also has meters that charge $1.50 per hour for the first three hours, after which the price increases to $3 per hour.
New Hampshire State Parks charges $3 per hour at its meters at Hampton Beach and other parts of the Seacoast.
In York, parking meters run by the Ellis Park board of directors are strictly in the parking lot directly in front of Short Sands Beach. Town-owned meters are located on Long Sands Beach, Main Street, Beach Street, Ocean Avenue, and at Mount Agamenticus.
York Selectboard, Ellis Park directors discuss parking revenue
Joseph said raising the parking rates came up in a meeting he had with Bridges, chairman of the Ellis Park board of directors. The conversation continued to the Oct. 23 meeting where Bridges outlined the capital spending they anticipated in the coming years.
The directors said they planned to spend $665,000 on several projects including a new playground, shower, volleyball court and additional security cameras. Their parking revenue from last year was about $405,000, which they told the Selectboard meant they would need to draw at least $200,000 from its available funds.
“I’m not sure that it’s comfortable, but it’s something that has to be done,” Bridges said of the capital improvements. “We need a new playground, whether or not we think we can afford one.”
Joseph noted that parking revenue was down $50,000-$100,000 from last year, partly due to several rainy summer days. He said if the Ellis Park expenses and revenue trends continue, though, money will run out.
“They’re going to be depleting the cash on hand,” Joseph said. “We do need to look at the revenue side of it, which is the hourly parking rate.”
Bridges said his board is open to raising the rate, though he said only if the town does because of past experience. He said the Ellis Park and town meters have been the same price historically except for one year in which the town increased theirs while the park’s remained the same.
“It caused a lot of hate, discontent, among the people that had to pay for more any place other than Ellis Short Sands Park,” Bridges said. “So, we decided to only have the same.”
Town officials to deliberate on parking meters this winter
Joseph said the parking meter discussion has not been put on any agenda yet, but he expects the topic to come up during the budget process.
He said the Budget Committee will have a chance to discuss the meters as they will include any projected revenue in their budget planning. He said any plan to spend money using projected revenue would likely have to be conservative in case the budget is not approved by voters in May.
Some business owners said they hope the money collected from meters could go towards trash pickup. Business owners have complained the removal of trash cans at Short Sands Beach since the COVID-19 pandemic has led to garbage piling up. Town officials have said bringing back the service would be costly.
Patty Krukoff-Bernier, who owns Nick’s Beachside Restaurant and manages Molly-O’s, said higher parking prices might deter day trippers. Funding trash pickup, she said, would make it worthwhile.
“If this means they’re going to put the trash receptacles out, and that’s what they’re covering for costs, that would be OK in my book,” Krukoff-Bernier said, “Because that’s what everybody’s been complaining about.”
Parking fees collected by the town must be used in the vicinity of where they were collected, according to Frederick, which means money collected from beach lots could be invested there. Joseph said new revenue from meters could help fund trash pickup at the beach.
“That is part of the discussion, absolutely,” Joseph said.