Parking puzzle on Hilton Head could get pricier for visitors, cheaper for residents
Residents, employees and visitors to Hilton Head Island who have mastered the beach parking puzzle may soon find that paying for a spot at the beach could become a whole new game. For some, a very expensive one that could carry as much as a 900% increase for visitors and non-resident employees.
Hilton Head town council will vote Tuesday on a resolution recommended by the Community Services and Public Safety Committee making major changes to how much it will cost drivers to park at the town’s beaches. Part of the proposal includes cutting residential parking pass fees to zero.
Also in the Tuesday session will be the first of two readings of the ordinance needed to amend the town code.
This plan has been nearly five years in the making, according to Deputy Town Manager Josh Gruber.
Consensus is needed
According to Gruber, any “real movement” will require action from town council. It is possible the council will not be able to come to a consensus Tuesday, he said, which means there is no guarantee they will take action. The council will consider residential parking passes and employee parking concerns near Coligny Beach and will work to establish a parking rate. Parking as it exists today will remain unchanged until an ordinance and resolution are passed, Gruber said.
The current fees and methods of payment for town beach parking are as follows, according to Carolyn Grant, the town spokesperson:
- Fish Haul Beach Park - free to park
- Islanders Beach Park - metered spaces that only accept quarters - $0.25/15 minutes or $1/hour
- Folly Field Beach Park – metered spaces that accept credit card and quarters - $0.25/15 minutes or $1/hour
- Driessen Beach Park - metered spaces that accept credit cards and quarters - $0.50/hour
- Chaplin Community Park/Burkes Beach - free to park
- Coligny Beach Park - free to park
- Alder’s Lane - metered spaces that only accept quarters - $0.25/15 minutes or $1/hour
Local families can currently pay $15 each year for a parking pass for up to two vehicles.
Both the proposal ordinance and resolution are on the agenda for Sept. 17. An ordinance, Gruber explained, is essentially the back-bone of the law, and requires two separate readings on two separate days before adoption by the council. If passed, an ordinance would amend the town code. A resolution is more flexible and requires only one reading and a vote. Resolutions set forth details like rate structure, dates, times and locations for payment, which could be more-easily adjusted in the future by another resolution.
Recent recommendations
On August 19, the committee voted 3-1 to adopt several recommendations for the resolution. The committee recommended:
- Requiring paid parking at all seven town beach parking facilities between March 1 and Sept. 30.
- Establishing uniform hours of operation for the beach parks (6 a.m. to 10 p.m.) and require paid parking between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m.
- Slashing the $15 fee for residential beach parking passes but maintaining a cap of two passes per household.
- Suspending paid parking at Chaplin Beach Park during youth recreational sports (in other words, only requiring beach parking between Memorial Day and Labor Day).
- Establishing a free park and ride program using USCB, Crossing Park or other town-owned property, along with a corresponding shuttle service for employees working near Coligny Beach Park.
The committee also recommended three possible rate structures for council consideration:
$3 per hour with a maximum daily rate of $15 during the week, and a flat rate of $20 per day on the weekends.
$3 per hour with a maximum daily rate of $15 during the week and a flat rate of $20 per day on the weekends during the months of June, July and August.
- $5 per hour with a maximum daily rate of $30 during the week, and a flat fee of $25 on the weekends.
The committee surveyed similar beach communities on their parking rate structures. Tybee Island charges $4 per hour with no maximum daily rate. Myrtle Beach charges between $2 and $3 per hour with a $10-$15 cap. Wrightsville Beach in Wilmington, North Carolina charges a structure similar to one of the committee’s: $5 per hour with a $25 daily cap.
According to Gruber, there is no indication of which structure the council will support.
The committee projected that between March and Sept., the $3 per hour structure could bring in $1.53 million, and the $5 per hour structure could yield $2.55 million.
Why is this happening?
Parking rates would help cover a town beach-wide upgraded electronic parking plan that would do away with coin meters and replace them with updated kiosks and text-to-pay technology.
The rates, according to town documents, would also cover capital expenses for 153 parking space sensors, 22 license plate reader cameras, and automated exit parking gates at Folly Field, Coligny, Driessen, Fish Haul and Islander Beach Park. Purchasing and installing one license plate reader camera costs $10,475 according to town estimations. Exit gates cost about $10,550 each.
Removing fees for residential parking passes also reduces annual revenue to the Beach Parking Management Program by $105,000.
Concerns, possible solutions
Coligny Beach is surrounded by local businesses. 146 within 100-yard radius according to a town-initiated survey. According to Gruber, community members are concerned that if employees had to pay to park in spaces that were once free, employee recruitment and retention would be at risk.
Several business owners appeared before the committee in August to voice their concerns.
“As a town, what have we done for employees in the last ten years? It’s a challenge finding great employees,” said Jay Wiendyl, chairman of the Hilton Head Bluffton Chamber and general manager of the Beach House Resort.
For some community members, this is only a temporary solution for a much bigger issue: the lack of parking.
“I don’t think it’s going to matter if you charge or you don’t charge. There’s no parking. There’s no available parking, ” said Carolyn Baltz a 25-year restaurant owner on the island, to the committee.
This story was originally published September 16, 2024 at 5:00 AM.
