Tybee Island’s City Council is considering increasing the parking fees for the beachfront parking lots on the north and south ends.
Under the proposal, visitors would be charged $2 per hour to park at those locations — a rate increase of 50 cents.
In addition, the city is proposing a $50 increase for a yearly parking decal, which currently costs $100.
Mayor Jason Buelterman said the increases are needed to cover beach-related costs such as trash collection, lifeguard protection and erosion control.
“What we bring in on parking doesn’t cover all the stuff we have to pay for,” he said.
Beach-related expenses are expected to cost the city about $3.4 million during the coming fiscal year, according to a breakdown of those costs provided by the city. Anticipated revenue from the increase from the decals is $77,400 and from the parking lots is $270,154. Even with the increases, the city projects that revenue from parking fees and fines will be short by about $757,000.
To make up the difference, the city relies on hotel tax and property tax revenue, Buelterman said.
Under the plan, the cost of metered parking on the streets would not be impacted.
Amy Gaster, president of the Tybee Island Tourism Council, said the increase was not likely to have a large impact on the number of visitors since the fee hike is confined to the parking lots, Gaster said.
“If they were raising it on the whole island, that would probably not be very favorable,” she said.
The last parking rate increase was approved in December 2007, when the city council settled on a 50-cent increase after initally considering a $1 hike.
The thought of paying an additional 50 cents for parking did not bother Dustan and Lauren Sweely. The Atlanta couple was visiting Tybee for the first time on Tuesday and said the increase would not deter them from returning.
The same goes for Carol Martin, who was visiting from Crossville, Tenn., with her husband, son and daughter-in-law. They do not visit enough for the parking fee to keep them from coming back, Martin said.
“It might make a difference if I lived close by and came often,” she said.