We need your support

One of our supporters is drafting a letter to Town Council about a major contradiction in past allowances for parking, that are totally contrary to their new standards. Please come back here in a few days.

In all that I've been reading, from people voicing a general belief that the council is working for the few isle residents to keep people, they are making visiting this beach difficult if not impossible. In my opinion, if they take one parking space for their beautification program, which only benefits island residents, then they truly are not working for the majority who oppose their actions.

Remember that if you don't voice your opinion/concerns/recommendations, silence is an agreement of their actions.

Dan

Letter from Calabash Resident to SB Town Council

February 23, 2011


Ladies and Gentlemen,

 My name is Barry Hirsch and I am a resident of Calabash.

My wife and I moved from New York to Calabash specifically because of the beautiful beach at Sunset. As natives from Brooklyn and Queens we had access to Coney Island, Brighton Beach, the Rockaways and if we wanted to travel a little, Jones Beach. As a youngster going to the beach with my family during the summer season we knew that if we wanted to not get stuck in bumper to bumper traffic and also find a spot to park we needed to leave early. Experience taught us that. And that same experience will teach others just as when the old swing bridge was up to leave early or there won't be any spaces to park.


 As a retired New York City Police lieutenant I can tell you that simple enforcement will cure any parking ills quickly as word gets out that you either park legally or you will be summonsed. It seems to have worked for the three summers that we have utilized the beach thus far. There were certain streets we knew to go to first where there were a few spots that were usually available even when we happened to get to the beach a little later than we planned and if there were no legit spots available we went home. We certainly noticed that cars that had parked illegally, for example with their tires on the roadway, were summonsed. An expensive lesson learned but one no doubt not to be repeated. And no doubt that experience was shared with others. 


If the reputation of the area and police are such, people will know that parking enforcement is to be taken seriously and problems will be negligible. I know this to be fact.


 I respectfully request that before any draconian measures be put into effect that will negatively affect all those that do not live in Sunset Beach but that respect the parking regulations that are already in effect, try waiting a summer season with strict police enforcement and see how it works out. Please feel free to contact me for further discussion of the matter.  


  Respectfully, Barry Hirsch


SB Town Council response:


Mr. Hirsch ...
Thank you for your email. I couldn’t agree more that strict and consistent enforcement of our laws is paramount and Council has given that direction to our Chief. She will instruct her officers to do so and I agree that will have an impact.

We will officially adopt some new regulations at our March 7 Council meeting and as time goes forward and further investigation is undertaken we will review the remaining recommendations of the Parking Committee.

It is my hope and I know of others on the Council that we make the best decisions possible for the greater good.

I hope you continue to enjoy our fabulous beach.
KarenKaren Joseph

Meeting at Town Hall Tomorrow

9:00 AM. I understand it is a working meeting but w/o public comment. Please if you can attend, that would be good.

Where to send emails (see 'older posts' for more details)

Sunset Beach Town Council
Mayor: Ron Klein  rmklein@atmc.net
Mayor Pro-Tem: Lou Devita  deesatplay@atmc.net
Councilwoman: Karen Joseph kjoseph@atmc.net
Councilwoman: Carol Scott ckscott13@gmail.com 
 Councilman Wilson Sherrill   wilsonsherrill@hotmail.com
 Councilman Bob Bobinski   bobbobinski@atmc.net

Letter to Sunset Beach Town Council

Dear Council Members,

 

I respect you for your dedication and hard work.

 

In 16 years of visiting Sunset Beach, restricting parking is only the second issue that has bothered me. Although parking is not an issue for me because friends allow me to park at their home, I ask on behalf of others that you delay reducing parking until more information is gathered.

 

1. The effect of the new bridge on visits to the island is unknown. Throughout the 25 years of litigation, it was alleged that a new bridge would turn the island into Myrtle Beach. More recently, persons claim the the beach will be overrun with day visitors. Time is needed to see if use changes.

 

2. A formal engineering and traffic investigation will be conducted by NCDOT, probably during spring or summer traffic periods. Wait for those results.

 

3. The Town needs to determine precisely how many public right of way parking spaces will be eliminated.

 

4. Numbered streets are 20 feet wide with a 5-foot-wide public right of way on each side.  I was told is that only the miniest of mini cars are five feet wide. My hunky Subaru Forester is five feet wide. Thus hundreds of vehicles are. Yet if we park on the public right of way, our passengers would step on private property to exit our vehicles. After determining how many spaces there are on numbered streets and how many people you will prevent from visiting Sunset Beach, if you feel the need to eliminate them, consider having parking on the public right of way on one side only. Make it six feet wide, extending onto the pavement. Pave a foot on the opposite side of the road to regain the 20-foot wide roadway. 

 

5. I further recommend using an outside consultant company with experience in parking issues.

 

6. In addition, I recommend surveying people on the beach throughout the summer for their opinions about the recommendations and their suggestions.  

 

7. Neither the fire department nor the police department can tell me how many times per year or if ever improperly parked and/or legally parked vehicles blocked passage during an emergency. Get those numbers. While even one time is too many for those involved, properly enforced parking would prevent blockages.

 

8.  After a holiday weekend last summer, someone wrote that there was no space to set foot on the beach, that it was impossible to walk and find a spot to claim for one's group. Although congestion might occur on each side of the gazebo, there are many blocks of unused beach, full acres of walking area on the east and west ends and on the Bird Island Coastal Reserve.

 

9. If you reduce parking, particularly on numbered streets on the west end, you will end access to the Bird Island Coastal Reserve. Before doing so, I recommend contacting administrators of the Reserve: NOAA, the N.C. of Environment and Natural Resources/Division of Coastal Management, the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, component Local Advisory Committees, the Carolina Estuarine Reserve Foundation, and other partners to get their point of view.

 

10. The most grave consequence will be denying it to hundreds of families who legally parked on side streets for decades. They will be denied access to most of the island.

 

11. The notion of limiting parking to three hours is inconsiderate. Each of you had young children and independent teenagers one time. Imagine driving an hour with your family for a day trip to Sunset Beach, an American right. After paying to park, spend 20 minutes minimum, perhaps 30, to find a place on the beach to set down family gear. Two hours later the entire family must leave to be back to its car within three hours. No one will know this before coming to Sunset Beach and everyone will be irate at the Town when they find that out. 

 

12.  Some recommendations of the parking committee are unclear. I will attach a document showing some of my concerns.

 

The system has worked so far. Please consider all options before radically changing it. 

 

Thank you for your consideration.

 

Jo O'Keefe

30 Gate 3

Carolina Shores, NC 28467

H: 910-579-0655

C: 919-606-8345

Complete summary of proposed changes

If little of the following makes sense, just realize that this totally restricts all those coming over to SB from staying for a day to enjoy the beach or just making life difficult. This one beach is perhaps the last one in NC that is undeveloped and left in a very rustic, Southern style. If you enjoy 3 hour limit parking meters, greatly restricted parking rules, then welcome to Sunset Beach.

Please provide your comments. They will all be presented to Town Council as a mild form of protest against the following 'Draft' proposal.

Summary of Draft Recommendations from Parking Committee

After group research and discussion since May, the committee’s general recommendations are:

1. Adopt new parking standards for each street as follows:

a. Main Street, North Shore Drive, and Canal Drive‐parallel parking allowed on both sides of the street (with the direction of traffic) with no more than two contiguous parking places at any one parking site.   Spaces to be designated.  Once the planned bike/walk path is constructed, parking would not be allowed on the same side of the street as the path.  (Committee voted unanimously).

b. Parking would be changed from parallel to diagonal at the west end of Main Street between 40^th Street and the inlet to increase the number of spaces.  (Committee voted8‐1).

c. No parking would be allowed on side streets 1st‐6th  and 7^th through 15^th on the east side and 27th ‐40^th on the west side of the island.  (Committee voted nanimously).

d. Marlin, Dolphin, Sailfish, or Cobia Streets‐ parallel parking allowed on both sides of the street (with the direction of traffic) with no more than two contiguous parking places at any one parking site.   Spaces to be designated.  (Committee voted unanimously).

e. Sunset Blvd‐we support unanimously the general plan previously developed by the Streetscape committee for the area along the street between North Shore and Main Street.  The plan would increase designated spaces to approximately 63 along the east side of the street, and would incorporate a bike/walk path on the west side of the street.  We also support unanimously the reconfiguration of the gazebo parking lot to add more spaces per Councilman DeVita’s previous presentation.

2. That the Town convert the designated parking spaces to paid parking while incorporating a permit system that would allow town residents to use available spaces at no cost.  It would be expected that there would be some nominal cost to cover the expense of producing and tracking these permits.  (Committee voted unanimously).

3. That the Town ask DOT to adopt a lower speed limit along Main Street during the season (May through September?) after DOT conducts a traffic study.  (Committee voted unanimously).

4. That the Town enforce existing ordinances regarding driveway cuts, encourage the grouping of mailboxes along blocks and streets, and any other actions that might free space for potential parking spaces along any of the available streets.   

5. The Town adopt and enforces a ‘no overnight parking’ rule for all island public parking spaces.

6. Finally, there is an existing issue of folks parking on private property without permission (usually on undeveloped lots).  Our Town police staff has told us that the D.A.’s office will not prosecute these infractions even if tickets are written.  This is a loophole that the Town will need to work with both property owners and the appropriate County staff to resolve.

Sunset Beach Proposed Parking Changes (Summary)

The following was presented to SB Town Board Members on February 7, 2011.  We have been told this is only the parking committee's proposals and is not an official parking change document. The concern by island residents is that since the bridge has been finished, they expect to see huge volume of non-island residents flooding the beach area. While this maybe true, the reality is those on the island want to now restrict parking for those that live there and weekly summer renters, all others are not welcomed.

I understand there will be public responses to whatever the Board proposes and that they too are concerned about some issues.

The problem we see is that to visit during the summer season will require either metered parking or a weekly parking permit and that numbered streets are going to be 'no parking' zones. Those areas have always been used for parking, as long as one is off the road and obey signage. We think that parking meters solves nothing as people will pay or leave if all spaces are taken, it just creates an eye sore, something akin to NJ shore.

We'll see what is proposed by the Board. We all trust it will fit the style of southern hospitality and in keeping with the charm of the most beautiful barrier island in NC.

Please feel free to add comments and/or email us.

Dan and Adrienne Johnston
Calabash, NC

Here is the summary:

Summary of Draft Recommendations from Parking Committee ‐parallel parking allowed on both sides of the street (with the direction of traffic) with no more than two contiguous parking places at any one parking site. Spaces to be designated. Once the planned bike/walk path is constructed, parking would not be allowed on the same side of the street as the path. (Committee voted unanimously). th Street and the inlet to increase the number of spaces. (Committee voted 8‐1). st‐6th and 7th through 15th on the east side and 27th‐40th on the west side of the island. (Committee voted unanimously). ‐ parallel parking allowed on both sides of the street (with the direction of traffic) with no more than two contiguous parking places at any one parking site. Spaces to be designated. (Committee voted unanimously). ‐we support unanimously the general plan previously developed by the Streetscape committee for the area along the street between North Shore and Main Street. The plan would increase designated spaces to approximately 63 along the east side of the street, and would incorporate a bike/walk path on the west side of the street. We also support unanimously the reconfiguration of the gazebo parking lot to add more spaces per Councilman DeVita’s previous presentation.

After group research and discussion since May, the committee’s general recommendations are:

1. Adopt new parking standards for each street as follows: a. Main Street, North Shore Drive, and Canal Drive
b. Parking would be changed from parallel to diagonal at the west end of Main Street between 40
c. No parking would be allowed on side streets 1
d. Marlin, Dolphin, Sailfish, or Cobia Streets
e. Sunset Blvd





2. That the Town convert the designated parking spaces to paid parking while incorporating a permit system that would allow town residents to use available spaces at no cost. It would be expected that there would be some nominal cost to cover the expense of producing and tracking these permits. (Committee voted unanimously).
3. That the Town ask DOT to adopt a lower speed limit along Main Street during the season (May through September?) after DOT conducts a traffic study. (Committee voted unanimously).

5. The Town adopt and enforces a ‘no overnight parking’ rule for all island public parking spaces.
6. Finally, there is an existing issue of folks parking on private property without permission (usually on undeveloped lots). Our Town police staff has told us that the D.A.’s office will not prosecute these infractions even if tickets are written. This is a loophole that the Town will need to work with both property owners and the appropriate County staff to resolve.