REHOBOTH/DEWEY BEACH, Del. - Commissioners in two coastal towns voted on Friday in favor of higher parking rates with the goal of helping offset their local government expenses.
The hourly parking rate in Dewey Beach is increasing from $3 to $3.50. According to Commissioner Paul Bauer, since the town does not have a property tax, this is the easiest way to get more money for the town. With the town's fiscal year starting Apr. 1, this was a decision that had to be made sooner rather than later.
"We've got to have a top notch police department and lifeguards and services that we offer for everybody," Bauer says. "Just the cost of doing business and our costs keep getting higher every year, unfortunately.'
Jason Fruchtman who owns Jeremiah's Beach Party says he wasn't excited about the idea but understands the reasoning.
"The parking prices going up always is a bad thing to hear because that makes people not want to come to do it and stay for a long time," Fruchtman says. "This town always has extra costs and they got to figure out how to do it some way, so that's the only way and must be the best decision for them.
Rehoboth Beach Commissioners reluctantly voted unanimously to raise meter and permit rates. The hourly parking rate is increasing from $3 to $4. The 50 cent service fee for paying with a credit card was replaced by "reasonable service fees" that could possibly be determined by a third party vendor. Overall the parking permit pay scale is increasing 30 percent.
The new parking permit rates are as follows:
- Seasonable nontransferable $295, starting Aug.1: $150
- Seasonable Transferable $325, starting Aug. 1: $165
- Weekly $120
- Three day pass $60
- Daily pass $25 (It was $15 on weekdays and $20 on weekends.)
Rehoboth Beach Commissioners cited an increasing budget for raising the costs. One even suggested testing higher rates for some ocean block parking spaces.
"I really think we need to charge a premium for beach-front parking rather than an across the board," says Commissioner Tim Bennett.
"We can't always come back to parking and property taxes," Mills says. "You look at the capital improvement program five years from now there's a $20 million capital improvement program just for Wilmington and Baltimore."
Mills says inevitably property taxes and wastewater rates will be looked at to help with the budget too.
The changes are scheduled to begin Memorial Day Weekend in Dewey Beach. Rehoboth Beach's meter season picks back up May 15.