COCOA BEACH, Florida – By a 4-1 vote, the Brevard County Commission approved a proposal to charge a parking fee at Lori Wilson Park with the un-elected Tourist Development Commission collecting a 10% administration fee of all revenues generated. Commissioner John Tobia was the sole no vote.
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The parking fee proposal was introduced by District 2 Brevard County Commissioner Jim Barfield as a last-minute add-on agenda item on Friday.
According to Commissioner Barfield’s agenda item and attachments filed with the County:
All Brevard County residents, including Cocoa Beach residents, could buy an annual parking pass for $20.
An hourly parking fee for out-of-county visitors and residents without an annual pass would be $5 per hour not to exceed $25 per day.
Lori Wilson Park was the only remaining public beach park with free parking in Cocoa Beach, Florida.
Commissioner Barfield later posted a comment to this article on Facebook where he claims that Brevard County residents would not pay a parking fee.
While it is true that residents would technically not pay a “parking fee,” residents would still need to pay $20 annually for an RFID chip or some other type of pass to access the park, according to the agenda item and attachments:
After Commissioner Barfield challenged the Brevard Times article on “the facts” which were rebutted with documentary evidence by Brevard Times Saturday morning, Commissioner Barfield then attempted to explain away “the facts” as merely a “draft.”
While it is true that the attachments prepared by the TDC are marked as a draft, Commissioner Barfield’s own Agenda item, which was not a “draft” that was filed with the County, clearly contemplates that residents must pay a fee, but he just left out the dollar amount:
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| Brevard County Commissioner Jim Barfield’s District 2 includes includes Kennedy Space Center, Merritt Island, Port Canaveral, Cape Canaveral, Avon by the Sea, Cocoa Beach, Snug Harbor, portions of Cocoa, Rockledge, and Patrick AFB. |
