A petition asking the Vancouver Park Board not to add pay parking to Spanish Banks Beach is quickly gaining traction, with almost 3,000 signatures captured this week.
The park board will implement pay parking at rates of $3.50 per hour or $13 per day for the summer period at Spanish Banks as of April 1st.
Vancouver Park Board has decided to charge $3.50 an hour for parking all along Spanish Banks where it used to be free. We are told that parking is charged at other beaches like Kits and Jericho, but there’s a reason. Those beaches both have limited parking and far easier public transport and bike access. Spanish Banks is long and has a great deal of parking. People come to Spanish Banks by car because it is by far the easiest way to get there, especially for large families, the elderly, disabled or people with bbq’s or other beach gear.
But we are told that the Park Board needs to raise money to pay for upkeep and they rely on these fees. Then the question is, how on earth has the Park Board managed for all these years while Spanish Banks has been free? Is there some other reason their budget requires this new source of income? Could it be poor fiscal management or simply a matter of priorities?
Read more and sign the petition here.
