In a response to Stafford County’s decision to slap a $25 fee for non-county residents who want to park their car at a popular county park, Historic Port of Falmouth on the Rappahannock River, neighboring Fredericksburg is now looking to do the same.
The city will hold an informational meeting on Monday, June 27, at 6:30 p.m. at the Dorothy Hart Community Center, 408 Canal Street, where residents can learn about a plan to charge parking fees at Old Mill Park. The new fees could go into effect as early as July, the city posted to Facebook:
As the city’s parks grow in popularity the operational/maintenance costs are increasing, and as highlighted in the recently approved Parks and Recreation Master Plan, necessitate additional cost recovery.
The fees in Stafford may also push additional users to Old Mill Park, many of whom may seek parking options in adjacent neighborhoods. The public is invited to join City staff in a discussion about what is being proposed to continue to manage access to our great park while working to avoid unsafe overuse.
Old Mill Park at 2201 Caroline Street sits across from Historic Port of Falmouth Park, and has not been as crowded as its Stafford counterpart, and is not as popular with swimmers. A city spokeswoman said the City Council will discuss the plan for fees during its Tuesday, June 28 meeting.
She could not say if the City Council would hold a public, on-the-record hearing on the matter, and could not provide an estimate on what it would cost the city to implement fees at the park.
Earlier this month, Stafford County voted to charge non-c0unty residents $25 for parking at the Historic Port of Falmouth beginning on July 22, 2022, and plans to hire new parking attendants weeks before the new fees.
The fee is expected to pull in $283,750 in revenue to fund parking management, trash cleanup, and public safety and to recoup the costs of frequently rescuing swimmers on the river. The county will install credit card machines for parking staff to collect fees from park-goers from out of the area.
A handful of residents spoke to the Stafford Board of Supervisors, questioning the fees and the possibility that it may detract potential tourism from the area at a time when the county is trying to improve its tourism industry after the coronavirus pandemic.
County leaders started debating the parking issue at the park before the coronavirus pandemic. During the pandemic, reports of park-goers parking in residential areas and causing traffic issues and illegal parking in some nearby areas, like Carter Road, have been cause for concern.
