Higgins Beach is a public beach, parts owned (and taxpayer funded) by the town and the state, and the roads to Higgins Beach are public.  The streets at Higgins Beach are already restricted to parking for longer lengths of time than other Scarborough beaches. But now a group of Higgins Beach residents want to ban parking on all public streets even during the off season?   

First, the walk between the recently purchased parking lot and the beach may be too hazardous for the elderly or small children during the winter. And the parking lot was preserved to insure access to a public beach as population growth demands more, not less, parking. Second, records clearly show a clean safety and accident report in relation to on-street parking – so why are proponents of the ban saying otherwise? Third, there are always a few bad apples, in every group. But to turn a few possible issues into a parking issue, is simply illogical and warrants skepticism.    

Many beach-goers invest time in protecting their beach, and possibly more so than some proponents of the parking ban. The surfing community monitors water quality and organizes beach clean-ups – and just as a beach walker, fisherman, dog walker, kayaker, Frisbee player, kite flier, or sunbather, they make up the fabric of a community who all have an equal right of access and historical investment in this public resource. Let’s not allow proponents of a parking ban to turn our attention away from what really matters.

Ines Rogachevsky
South Portland