The NYC Department of Transportation (DOT) is planning to introduce metered parking along sections of Shore Front Parkway next year. Photo by Andre Carrotflower

The NYC Department of Transportation (DOT) is planning a series of changes along Shore Front Parkway starting next spring, including the installation of seasonal parking meters along portions of the beachfront road between Beach 73rd Street and Beach 108th Street.

According to a department plan obtained by The Wave, DOT is planning to install seasonal parking meters between Beach 97th Street and Beach 90th Street, with another smaller section of seasonal parking meters planned between Beach 90th Street and Beach 84th Street.

The concept of metered parking on Shore Front Parkway is not new. DOT presented metered-parking options to Community Board 14 in 2017, but the board opposed changing the existing parking restrictions on the south side of the roadway.

At the same time, this plan also comes after years of complaints about illegal parking along Shore Front Parkway, particularly during the summer beach season. The Rockaway Beach Civic Association (RBCA) and other local residents have repeatedly called for more visible pavement markings and signage to prevent vehicles from occupying the drop-off lane.

The issue was raised again at an RBCA meeting earlier this year, when DOT Queens Deputy Borough Planner Emanuel “Manny” Evans acknowledged that seasonal metered parking was among the options that could be considered. RBCA members opposed the idea, with concerns that a limited number of paid spaces could increase traffic as drivers search for parking in nearby residential areas.

When asked about the plan earlier this week, NYC Councilwoman Joann Ariola clarified her stance on the installation of seasonal parking meters on Shore Front Parkway, recalling how she previously opposed the idea following strong opposition from the RBCA and other complaints from constituents who live nearby.

“We’ve been at war with DOT regarding Shore Front Parkway,” Ariola said in a statement to The Wave. “They are fully aware that parking meters were a non-starter for the community, and I feel that they implemented them into this proposal as a punitive measure because our office has been holding them accountable for not doing their job.”

According to Ariola, her office previously offered to pay for pavement markings along the roadway, but she says DOT declined the funding so the work could be completed in-house.

“For all these years that we’ve been asking for some type of change on Shore Front Parkway, all of a sudden, now they can do it? They don’t need extra money to do it, and they can all do it in-house?” Ariola questioned.

Ariola also expressed concern that this plan could eventually be expanded to include metered parking along additional portions of Shore Front Parkway.

“If the community wanted the meters, fine, but I think [that] would open up a can of worms,” Ariola said. “It’s my opinion that they [DOT] want to then expand on it when people become more accustomed to it. Then, what they’ll do is they’ll make all of Shore Front Parkway seasonal [parking],” she added. “I do believe that there is a larger, more nefarious plan.”

Aside from seasonal parking, the plan also includes other changes to the roadway.

Between Beach 90th Street and Beach 84th Street, a small section will be designated as seasonal loading space for NYC Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks) concessionaires. Authorized parking will also be added for NYC Parks concessionaires to accommodate loading and other activity during the beach season between Beach 98th Street and Beach 97th Street.

Between Beach 105th Street and Beach 102nd Street, DOT plans to install granite blocks to complement existing No Standing Anytime (NSA) regulations, while additional NSA signs are planned between Beach 102nd Street and Beach 98th Street and between Beach 84th Street and Beach 73rd Street.

No changes are planned between Beach 108th and Beach 105th Streets, where NYC Parks-authorized summer parking and existing NSA regulations will remain.

The planned changes are expected to begin in spring 2027, with DOT aiming for them to be complete in time for next summer.

DOT did not respond to The Wave’s requests for comment.