BETHANY BEACH, Del. - The town made parking free on Tuesdays in August from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. to encourage people to support local businesses. That weekly perk became daily on Wednesday and it will last through the end of meter season on September 15th.
Vice Mayor Rosemary Hardiman says Bethany Beach worked with the Bethany-Fenwick Area Chamber of Commerce to gather feedback from businesses before implementing parking changes in September. She says the town proposed that pay-to-park end September 1st, 2020, but that businesses wanted the two-hour parking to keep creating turnover through the end of meter season. She says with no time limit, beach-goers could take parking from customers.
Betty Sonneveldt owns a vacation home in Bethany Beach and loves 2020's parking rules, especially how easy it is to find a permitted space. Hardiman says those benefits won't end with parking season on September 15th.
"The beach front lots will be reserved for residential permit from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. until October 1st," Hardiman says. "We've heard from the realtors that we're going to have a busier September than usual. They have more rentals."
To help businesses during the pandemic the town kept its meters off until June 1st, gave free permits to businesses for their employees, began turning meters off after 4 p.m. and made 60 pay-to-park spaces free for 15 minute pickup. Hardiman says the town lost about a quarter of $1 million from these parking changes this season. She says the goal was to help the businesses and that the town can absorb the cost.
"Some of that's been offset too by not having bandstand performances, but the town is in very good financial shape because we've always budgeted revenue very conservatively and we haven't borrowed money for projects," Hardiman says. "We've done that out of reserves."
Many business owners who did not wish to speak on camera say the two-hour parking limit and too many free 15-minute spaces have driven customers away.
Silver Stockpile owner Bob Thornton says it's too late in the summer for any parking changes to help business.
"You can't bring people into town after you discouraged them month on end from coming to the beach," Thornton says. "There's a good possibility that 5 of my 6 neighbors are closing."
Leslie Shuey with Bethany Beach Books says the free 15-minute spaces are beneficial for customers who need to park for a short time to pick something up. She hopes free parking after 4 p.m. will bring more people to town.
"Anytime you can get the free parking inside of the typical when you have to pay parking is an asset," Shuey says. "Let's hope that it brings more people down in the evenings because that's one thing they don't have to worry about."
Hardiman says the town will evaluate these parking changes at the end of the parking season, taking into account the opinions of businesses and homeowners when deciding how to move forward with 2021's parking season.
