Gulf Shores Proposal Would Make All Beach Parking Paid, Charge by the Hour
A proposed ordinance would charge for parking on six beach-area streets that are now free and replace the current daily fee with an hourly rate. Gulf Shores residents and property owners with a Hurricane Re-Entry Decal would continue to park at no charge.
The Gulf Shores City Council is scheduled to review a proposal on June 1 that would convert all public parking in the beach area to paid parking and shift from a daily fee to an hourly rate, according to the agenda for the council's work session (item 4.A, Economic Development).
Agenda packet, June 1 work session, page 7 — the Economic Development item summary and proposed fee structure.
The item summary says staff want to expand paid parking to "encourage daily parking turnover and discourage overnight parking" in response to concerns from business owners. The agenda notes the city has built additional public parking in recent years along East 1st Street, East 1st Avenue, East 2nd Street, West 1st Street, West 1st Avenue and West 2nd Street. Parking in those areas is currently free, which the summary says has fed complaints about overnight parking and a lack of turnover in front of businesses during the day. Paid beach parking is not new to the city: the agenda says Gulf Shores already charges at Gulf Place, sections of West Fifth, Sixth, 10th and 13th streets, and Lagoon Pass Park. The proposal would extend paid parking to the newly built lots and move the entire system from a daily fee — currently $15 for all-day parking at most lots, or $5 for four hours at Gulf Place and West Fifth Street, according to the city — to hourly rates.
The proposed fee structure listed in the agenda would let Gulf Shores residents and property owners with a Hurricane Re-Entry Decal park free in all areas, as long as their vehicle — including any trailer — is no longer than 19 feet. Others would pay $2 an hour from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. north of Beach Boulevard (Alabama Highway 182) and $3 an hour south of it. Overnight rates would be $4 an hour, charged from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. north of Beach Boulevard (excluding Lagoon Pass Park) and from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. south of it and at Lagoon Pass Park. Parking would remain restricted in all beachfront areas and Lagoon Pass Park after 2 a.m., while parking elsewhere would be allowed around the clock subject to the overnight fee.
Agenda packet, page 9 — the draft resolution's controlled-parking areas and hourly fee table.
An accompanying resolution would authorize the mayor or his designee to contract with ParkMobile for a mobile-payment option in addition to or in place of payment kiosks. The agenda says the new resolution would amend and rewrite Resolution 6632-22 in its entirety; the council adopted that resolution along with Ordinance 2079 on Dec. 12, 2022.
The June 1 meeting is a work session, where the council discusses items rather than votes. The draft resolution states it would be taken up at a regular session on June 8 and would take effect upon adoption.