Lewes seeks input on beach parking

Now that the tourist season is over, the topic of parking at the beach is back before Lewes Mayor and City Council.

City Manager Ann Marie Townshend provided an update at council’s Nov. 8 meeting. She said city staff has been working on a handful of recommendations sent to them by council in February, including a parking permit program and delineation of parking spaces.

Council scheduled a workshop for 6 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 18, to gather feedback from the public on those specific issues. Townshend said there are no specific plans for a parking permit system, and she hopes the workshop will direct the city in the right direction. Options to consider, she said, include parking zones and first-come, first served permit parking. She’d also like to hear from residents about whether they’d prefer hangtags or license plate permit registration.

In advance of the Nov. 8 meeting, city engineer George Miles & Buhr created a conceptual map delineating every possible parking space on Lewes Beach from Savannah Road to Roosevelt Inlet. Although the map shows 630 parking spaces, Townshend admits there are likely to be areas that can’t be used for parking. The Jan. 18 workshop is an opportunity for residents to offer corrections to the map, she said.

Councilman Khalil Saliba, a Lewes Beach resident, said he’s received a lot of positive feedback from his neighbors.

“I think people are excited we’re moving forward and we’re exploring this in a transparent way,” he said. “This is a good first step.”

Bay Avenue resident Kevin McGuiness, a member of the city’s second and most recent beach parking committee, encouraged council to create a framework around the beach parking discussion. Doing that, he said, will alleviate a lot of confusion and angst among Lewes Beach residents.

“What really hurt our committee was that no one explained the goal,” he said. “How many spots do you want? How many spots do we have? What’s the difference? And then it’s easier to get there.”

Before the city holds the workshop in January, McGuiness suggested city council work out issues Townshend also raised about inconsistencies in parking signage throughout the beach area.

“All of that is going to end up shrinking the possible places you could park,” he said. “Having that worked out in advance, it is going to be a lot easier.”