Unlimited Parking in Seaside Heights? Town Will Offer Two New Options for Drivers

The municipal parking lot in Seaside Heights on Grant Avenue, which will be part of a forthcoming parking study, May 2023. (Photo: Shorebeat)

The dream of unlimited parking in one of the Jersey Shore’s busiest summer resorts can be yours – for a price.

Seaside Heights officials on Wednesday adopted two new plans that would allow drivers to park in virtually any metered space in town, for an unlimited amount of time, by paying an annual fee. Meanwhile, the same ordinance ended a long-standing practice of allowing those with handicap placards to park without paying meter fees after officials said they discovered rampant fraud in recent years, bringing an end to what was a last-of-its-kind courtesy on the barrier island.

As for the unlimited parking option, “Anybody who wants to buy it can buy it,” said Mayor Anthony Vaz, explaining that two types of passes would be available for drivers.

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For $300, a sticker will be issued to a vehicle, allowing that vehicle to park in all metered spaces except the few that exist on the street-ends near the board, since those spaces are generally required by business owners. The sticker would have to remain with that vehicle for the year. For $500, the borough will issue a placard that can be transferred between vehicles and will be valid regardless of which vehicle is using it to park.

“You can park anywhere in town except on the street ends by the boardwalk,” Vaz said.

Image from Wikimedia

The amendments to the parking ordinance also included the end of the free parking program for those with handicap placards, which Vaz acknowledged will cause some to be unhappy, but was needed due to what officials identified as numerous fraudulent practices being used to take advantage of the program.

“We were finding out that people were making them up, printing their own, and they were caught,” said Vaz. “We also saw situations where a parent or grandparent might have a placard, but it would be ‘borrowed’ by a family member or friend for free parking.”

For the same reasons, every other island community that once had extended such a courtesy had ended it, leaving Seaside Heights as the sole remaining town to maintain the practice, Vaz said. Borough officials reviewed parking ordinances in other towns before making their decision.

“It’s not going to make everybody happy, but it has to be that way to ensure fairness and also keep our system efficient,” he said.

The borough’s traditional parking meter rates are not changing, the mayor confirmed.