Point Pleasant Issues Resident-Only Parking Passes

I know we've all said it before, but this summer is going to be unlike anything we've ever seen. Shore towns have been trying to keep non-residents out since the beginning of quarantine, and the arguments between locals and visitors have been loud and angry. Locals don't want people from New York or North Jersey to come down and bring the virus with them, they don't want area hospitals to be overwhelmed, they don't want area grocery stores to be stripped bare because some guy from Elizabeth wants to ride things out at his shore house on LBI. On the other hand, these out-of-towners do have the simple point of "hey, I own that property, I pay taxes on it, I can go there."

Some towns have floated the plan of opening their beaches for residents only, but Governor Murphy said that wouldn't be allowed. One town has come up with its own loophole, and as expected, people are split (and both sides are still loud and angry).

A resident of Point Pleasant sent a picture of a pair of parking passes he received from the town. The passes state that "the Borough of Point Pleasant Beach has put into effect a Temporary Emergency Parking Ban for all streets east of the railroad tracks ... You must display these parking passes ... if you park on the street east of the railroad tracks ... This ban, in force 24 hours a day, is a temporary measure to ensure the safety of our residents until further notice."

Making street parking available only to residents might be nice for those who live in PPB, but it screws not only the bennies, but also the semi-locals from places like Brick or Wall or wherever. I grew up in Brick, so Point Pleasant was a go-to destination, and it was always annoying to face the decision of blowing $10 or $20 to park in a lot versus driving loops around the side streets for half an hour trying to find a spot.

I think the most obvious indication that this is less about safety and more about money is that the parking pass states it is to be used for street parking. My interpretation is that the private lots will still be open for anyone, so it's basically saying "hey, come visit the beach or boardwalk, but be ready to shell out whatever the hell we want to charge to park nearby, or be ready to walk about a mile while carrying your beach blanket and umbrella and cooler and kids."

If this ruling stays in place all summer, it pretty much guarantees that I won't be visiting Point this year. I know there will be plenty of people that don't care, they'll drop the money to park, but I'm sure there are also a ton of people who come from far away that will say "This is how you want to treat tourists? Screw you."

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