Several residents said they won't necessarily mind a parking fee hike at Sandy Hook beaches, so long as the money is used wisely.
SANDY HOOK -- With a slight grimace and a less than enthusiastic nod, Michael Bishop said he would likely still go to Sandy Hook next summer, even if parking fees increased for the second time in five years.
However, Bishop said that he'll stomach the hike as long as the money is actually put to good use and not wasted.
Bishop, of Fords, was with his wife Saturday at Area D Beach where National Park Service officials were informally gathering public comment about the proposal to increase parking fees next at the popular park, which draws 2 million visitors annually.
The park service has proposed parking fee increases, which would begin next year, to go from $15 to $20 a day per car -- double the rate in 2011. For seasonal passes, parking fees would increase from $75 to $100, and from $150 to $200 for oversized cars. Daily fees for oversized cars would go from $30 to $50.
Sandy Hook Beach Area D in Middletown Township. Bishop and his wife have been paying for season passes for the past four years.
If the increase goes into effect, he said, "I'll probably still come, but I also am going to write to them ... They just upped the price four years ago, and nothing has changed."
At least nothing overtly noticeable, he said.
But Matthew Cotton, a Highlands resident who was just coming off the Area D beach with his wife, said he wouldn't care in the slightest if the fee increased. He and his wife have also been paying for season passes for the past four years.
"Wouldn't keep me home," he said with an unruffled swagger.
But, he added if the park service is going to implement parking fee hikes, he said people deserve to know exactly what officials plan to do with the money.
Daphne Yun, a spokeswoman for the National Park Service who was posted at a tent at Area D on Saturday with fellow park service rangers, said money from the increases would be put back into the park's facilities and services.
The proposal to increase fees has drawn controversy from both the public and legislators, notably U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-6th Dist). Pallone has asked for details on exactly what the park service plans to do with the money.
Park service rangers were handing out to patrons sheets of paper containing general information about the proposed increase.
According to the park service, the increase would go toward maintaining, improving and enhancing visitor services, amenities, interpretive programs, and adding new services.
The additional revenue, according to the information sheets handed out on Saturday, would be used to "provide improved visitor services including the repair and maintenance of buildings and facilities, habitat restoration, enhanced amenities, resource protection, and additional interpretation programs. Some specific plans include repairing the exteriors of the Nike Radar building and renovating Guardian Park restrooms."
Further projects would include the following: restoring the lighthouse in the early fall, expanding the ferry docking facility, monitoring the shoreline, implementing a lighthouse webcam and expanding free public kayaking and canoeing at all units of Gateway.
More information and further details on the proposed projects and fee increases can be found at the National Park's website at www.nps.gov.
"There have been positive (responses)," Yun said. "People do realize that even with the increase, we're still a deal."
As for potential fee increases in the future, the park service rangers said those decisions would be made in Washington, D.C.
So far, Yun said the park service has received about 50 comments, including written and email responses.
She said people have been very engaged, and that when they hear that the money is going to be reinvested into the park, they appreciate and support the initiative.
Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerMKent. Find the Find NJ.com on Facebook.