By BILL BARLOW/Special to the Sentinel
STRATHMERE — Discussions continued on introducing beach tags for Strathmere — with the most detailed picture to date presented at a Township Committee meeting Monday — but it is clear some members of the governing body still have questions.
Members unanimously approved a resolution requesting an ordinance be prepared for introduction. Township attorney Dan Young said he could write an ordinance requiring beach tags but wanted guidance from the committee, based on the current discussion.
“We can take those parameters and build an ordinance,” Young said.
Some committee members want more details before the final vote.
“The main thing is going to be those operational issues that we don’t have concrete,” Committee member Ed Barr said. “That’s where I stand. We have to get these things rectified.”
Even though winter seems long, the township is facing a tight timeline to create a new system for beach tags by summer if it is to be operational by Memorial Day.
“I don’t want to rush this. If we’re going to have a program like this, we have to make sure we have all of our ducks in a row,” Barr said.
If the township is to start selling tags by the traditional start of summer, he said, they already are running late.
Committeeman John Coggins reported on the finances of the proposal. As it now stands, the township is considering selling only seasonal tags at a cost of $25 each, or $20 if ordered before the start of the season.
The original plan called for tags to cost $45, which would have been the most expensive in the county. Coggins said there would be no daily or weekly tags available and no senior discount. Veterans would still get free tags, as the discussion stands now.
He said they could be ordered through a phone app or at a vending machine in town, under the current proposal.
Assuming the township sells about 5,000 tags, which Coggins described as a conservative estimate, it would bring in close to $113,000. He estimated the township would spend about $32,000 to establish the program, leaving more than $80,000 to be applied to the expenses of running the beach, including lifeguard coverage.
Coggins said that would help manage the current revenue shortfall. Before the start of the regular meeting, the committee spent an hour and a half in a workshop meeting trying to balance the budget for 2021, with hundreds of thousands more in spending requests that would be allowable under state caps on spending increases.
“Well, that’s not a reason for beach tags,” Mayor Rich Palombo said.
Committeeman Curtis Corson recommended introducing tags as part of a subcommittee discussion on Strathmere issues. The beach town was exceptionally crowded last summer and had problems with parking and other issues. Corson has said he does not want it to be the only county beach not to have tags, citing discussions under way to introduce beach fees in the Wildwoods as well.
Corson said the township could move forward on buying the tags before the final vote. There is a risk of investing in beach tags before the final vote, if a majority of committee members do not support the plan after hearing from residents and visitors. Palombo said he was interested in hearing from the public before making a final decision.
“We’ll have 6,000 collector’s items. We can sell them on eBay,” he said.
Coggins joked that it might bring in more money than requiring tags.
Committee members also voted to instruct Young to prepare an ordinance on new parking limits in Strathmere, to be introduced at the next meeting.
As outlined at a recent committee meeting, parking could be limited on West Prescott Avenue, West Putnam Avenue, East Randolph Avenue and along the northernmost stretch of North Bayview Drive.
The issue arose over the summer, when members of the Strathmere Volunteer Fire Company raised concerns about overcrowded streets. In some instances, cars parked on either side of narrow streets did not leave enough room for emergency vehicles to pass, leading to safety concerns.