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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem C28 BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS COUNTY of MONROE Mayor Michelle Lincoln,District 2 The Florida. Keys Mayor Pro Tem David Rice,District 4 p Craig Cates,District I James K. Scholl,District 3 - Holly Merrill Raschein,District 5 Regular Meeting May 20, 2026 Agenda Item Number: C28 26-23 l 00 BULK ITEM: No DEPARTMENT: Parks and Beaches TIME APPROXIMATE: STAFF CONTACT: Erika Nodal AGENDA ITEM WORDING: Discussion and direction regarding issues related to charging different parking fees for residents and nonresidents at County parks and boat ramps, and to provide further direction prior to moving forward. ITEM BACKGROUND: PREVIOUS RELEVANT BOCC ACTION: On December 10, 2025, the BOCC heard John's proposal during the relevant Discussion and Direction session at approximately 11 AM. The BOCC approved moving forward with parking fees at all eligible facilities, 7 days a week, non-residents only, including Gato and Murray Nelson Government Center. INSURANCE REQUIRED: N/A CONTRACT/AGREEMENT CHANGES: N/A STAFF RECOMMENDATION: DOCUMENTATION: Discussion Direction -Parking Fees 5.7.2026 FINANCIAL IMPACT: N/A Effective Date: Expiration Date: Total Dollar Value of Contract: Total Cost to County: Current Year Portion: Budgeted: Source of Funds: CPI: Indirect Costs: Estimated Ongoing Costs Not Included in above dollar amounts: Revenue Producing: If yes, amount: Grant: County Match: Insurance Required: Monroe County Parks & Beaches vehicle parking, trailer parking, boat ramp launch and retrieval fees and other potential locations. Discussion & Direction Monroe County Parks and Beaches are exploring ways to increase revenue to help offset costs associated with facility maintenance, improvements, and renovations. The following recommendations are provided for your review and direction. iw- I, 4 . r r 3 Table of Contents 1 . Review of Current Ordinance 2. Fee Structure Comparison and current revenue at Harry Harris 3. Parking Application and Enforcement 4. Recommended Rates 5. Discussion of Additional Potential Locations 6. Potential Revenue e er Monroe County Code —Current Sec. 18-27. - Rules of conduct and operational procedures for certain parks (h)Admission Fees for non-Monroe County residents only. (1) Vehicle Fees: a. Admission fees for Harry Harris Park will be $15.00 per vehicle. (2) Boat Ramp Fees: In addition to the fees in section (1) above, all vehicles with watercraft vessel trailers are subject to the following fees: a. On Monroe County non-holiday weekends, the boat ramp fees for Harry Harris Park shall be $40.00. b. On Monroe County holidays, which shall include the entirety of any contiguous weekend days, and the two-day annual July lobster mini-season, the boat ramp fees for Harry Harris Park will be $60.00. (3) Park admission fees are waived for active-duty military members, disabled veterans, and their immediate family members, i.e. surviving spouse, child, or parents, and other individuals as identified in F.S. 125.029 (with proper I.D. provided). Fee Structure Comparison Entity/Location Parking Fee Launch Fee Trailer Parking City of Marathon (no fee Beach parking is$5 for $25 in&$25 out Non- $20 Non-Resident for residents) each of the first two Resident hours and$2 per hour thereafter for Non- Resident Smathers Beach $5 per hour Non- N/A N/A Resident $39.13 Resident Annual Pass Harry Harris Park(no fee $15 pervehicle non-res $40 Non-holiday for residents) weekends only weekends From 7:30am-4:OOpm $60 Holiday weekend Islamorada (no fee for $8 Adults(18-64) $30 in&$30 out N/A residents) $5 Youth/Senior Non-Resident Entrance Fee Non- Resident #OF #OF #OF #OF RES BOATS VEHICLES RES BOATS VISITORS 10 62 72 683 40 200 205 930 202 104 100 502 13 233 92 880 38 331 143 911 69 396 160 943 59 425 84 647 128 495 209 757 96 294 192 701 142 276 273 719 163 237 229 665 57 90 128 626 Harry Harris FY 25 Revenue Total $83,135 Parking Application Parks and Beaches can implement this system beginning in April 2026. How it works: • No startup costs • Signage will be installed with unique codes for each park, ramp, and drop-in launch area • Park users will pay through their mobile phones using a variety of payment methods Associated Costs / Fees: • $0.35 per transaction (applies to both residents and non-residents, even if no parking charge applies) • Additional processing fees: $0.20 + 3% of the total transaction amount Enforcement Options Initial Option: • Off-duty deputies can issue citations using a master list provided by the parking application Future Option: • Contract with a License Plate Recognition (LPR) photo enforcement company o Upfront cost required • Citation revenue would be shared between the County and the company • Percentage split dependent on initial cost, number of parking spaces, and generated revenue Recommended Daily Rates at Harry Harris Park, Higgs Beach and Mike Forster Memorial Park Non-Resident Fees These fees will apply exclusively to non-residents: ■ Harry Harris Beach Parking (7:30-4:OOPM only): $5 per hour for the first two hours, then $2 per hour thereafter. ■ Higgs Beach Parking: $5 per hour ■ Boat Trailer Parking: $40 daily fee and $60 daily on holidays and contiguous weekend days. ■ Boat Ramp Launch Fee: $5 for each drop-in and out (does not include parking). Resident Rates 25% of Non-Resident Rates ■ Harry Harris Beach Parking: $1 .25 per hour for the first two hours, then .50 per hour thereafter. ■ Higgs Beach Parking: $1 .25 per hour ■ Boat Trailer Parking: $10 daily fee and $15.00 daily on holidays and contiguous weekend days. ■ Boat Ramp Launch Fee: $1 .25 for each drop-in and out (does not include parking). Locations (1) Mike Forster Boat Ramp - 7 boat trailer parking spaces; 1 accessible space (2) Higgs Beach - 112 standard parking spaces; 8 accessible spaces (3) Harry Harris Park- 82 standard parking spaces, 8 accessible spaces and 20 boat trailer parking spaces. Potential Revenue Based on Non-Resident Only Higgs Beach Using an estimate of 16 non-resident daily users at three hours per day for 365 days and deducting parking app fees, the resulting projected annual revenue is $82,000. Mike Forster Memorial Park Using and estimate of 2 non-resident daily users at the boat ramp for 365 days and deduction parking app fees, the resulting projected annual revenue is $35,000 Total with Harry Harris: $200,135 estimated Possible Other Locations for Consideration (4) Rowell's Waterfront Park- 55 standard parking spaces; 2 accessible spaces (5) Pine Channel Park- 18 standard parking spaces; 1 accessible (6)Veterans Memorial Beach Park-13 standard parking spaces; 1 accessible (7) Others? Potential Revenue at other locations Based on Non-Resident Only Rowells Using an estimate of 8 non-resident daily users at three hours per day for 365 days and deduction of parking app fees, the resulting projected revenue is $32,000 Pine Channel Park Using an estimate of 3 non-resident daily users at three hours per day for 365 days and deduction of parking app fees, the resulting projected revenue is $11,000.00 Veterans Memorial Beach Park Using an estimate of 3 non-resident daily users at three hours per day for 365 days and deduction of parking app fees, the resulting projected revenue is $11,000.00 Direction To Charge at Other Locations Non-Resident/New Location Current Fees Proposed Fees Cates Lincoln Scholl Rice Raschein $5 Per Hour for the First Two Hours,Then Harry Harris $15/Vehicle/Non $2 Per Hour Park Entrance Residents Thereafter. $40/Non- Harry Harris Holiday/Non- Boat Ramp- Residents/Weekends $40/Non- Trailer Parking Only Residents/Daily $60/Non- $60/Non- Harry Harris Residents/Holiday& Residents/Holiday& Boat Ramp- Contiguous Contiguous Weekend Trailer Parking Weekend Days Days Harry Harris $5 For Each Drop-in Boat Ramp- and Out(does not Boat Launch None include parking) Higgs Beach None $5 Per Hour Mike Forster Memorial Park- $40/Non- Trailer Parking None Residents/Daily $60/Non- Mike Forster Residents/Holiday& Memorial Park- Contiguous Weekend Trailer Parking None Days Mike Forster $5 For Each Drop-in Memorial Park- and Out(does not Boat Launch None include parking) $5 Per Hour/Non- Residents/6:OOPM- 12:OOAM Weekday& Gato Building Weekends 8:OOAM- Key West None 12:OOAM Murray Nelson Gov Center/ Peace Park None Rowe ll's Waterfront Park None Pine Channel Nature Park None Big Coppitt Volunteer Fire Dep Park None Wilhelmina Harvey Park None Bernstein Park None Big Pine Community Park None Blue Heron Park None Big Pine Dog Park None Watson Field Park None Bay Point Park& Waterside Park None Key Largo Community Park&Pool None Friendship Park None Old Settlers Park None Veterans Memorial Beach None Resident Fees? Questions? From: ahillin er-Bob To: Hurley-Christine Cc: Boan-Tina;Wilson-Kevin;Allen-John;Walter-Ana;Mercado-Pedro;Gomez-Krystal Subject: Parking Fee @ County Parks Memo Date: Tuesday,May 12,2026 5:54:07 PM Christine: As you know, our office was asked to determine whether the County can legally charge nonresidents (who don't pay property taxes which support parks) a parking fee at County parks while exempting County residents who are taxpayers from the same fee (hereinafter referred to as the "differential fee"). The short legal answer is mixed based upon restrictions unique to each park and is further complicated by the fact that the concept envisioned for collecting fees is to use a tag reader and parking app that would recognize a vehicle registered to a local address as the basis for being eligible for the fee exemption. While we can legally charge a differential fee for those six(6) parks that are not restricted (by grant or deed), we cannot charge a differential fee for the other seven (7) parks which are restricted. An additional complicating issue is that "residency" is not the "equivalent" of being a taxpayer. The proposed idea to charge a differential fee is based on the premise that property taxes are used to fund parks and that local property taxpayers have already contributed towards the operation of County parks through their property taxes. However, given the number of non-homesteaded residences in the County, we would have to use an expanded definition of "resident"to capture those taxpayers who would not be identified as county residents because they registered their vehicles in other counties and states. This is where the proposal to use the parking app technology falls short without the expenditure of additional staff resources when determining whether a vehicle that is owned by a local taxpayer but is registered out of county would be eligible for the fee exemption. Other attempts to define the term "resident" broadly to encompass property taxpayers who are legal residents of other counties and states involve (at times intensive) manpower efforts that go far beyond the capability of the parking app technology. For example, the COVID check point and the Trauma Star fee waiver program both involved manpower efforts to determine who was eligible for entry or a fee waiver and who was not. The parking app technology cannot do that without establishing a process staffed by county employees to determine whether a non-resident local property taxpayer whose taxes already support the park(e.g. a snowbird) is eligible for the fee exemption. For the record, the six County parks that are not encumbered by a restriction that would prohibit a differential fee are: 1. Big Cop pitt Volunteer Fire Department Park 2. Watson Field and Dog Park 3. Blue Heron Park 4. Mike Forseter Memorial Park and Ramp 5. Harry Harris Park& Ramp 6. Veteran's Memorial(pending completion of lease negotiations with FDOT) The seven County parks which are restricted in a manner that would prohibit a differential fee solely based upon the payment of local property taxes are: 1. Bernstein Park 2. Pine Channel Nature Park 3. Big Pine Community Park 4. Old Settlers Park 5. Key Largo Community Park& Pool 6. Friendship Park&Childrens Memorial 7. Rowells Waterfront Park In conclusion,while we can draft an ordinance that implements a differential fee for the six non-restricted parks based upon payment of local property taxes, however, the only way to do that in a fair manner that would withstand legal challenge would involve the expenditure of a significant enough amount of staff resources to call into question the practicality of such a program. Respectfully, Bob Shillinger County Attorney Monroe County Attorney's Office 1111 12th Street, Suite 408 Key West, FL 33040 (305)292-3470 (305)292-3516 (facsimile) Note, Florida has a broad public records law. Any information you send to this address, including your contact information, may be subject to public disclosure.