Saturday, January 11, 2025

Search

Unbearable Park Parking Gets Options, Goal: Add 1,200 Spaces, Rear Entry Kiosk

Supervising Engineer Bryan VanderGheynst of the firm NV5 in Parsippany explains alternatives for parking configurations at Cape May County Park to freeholders May 23.

By Al Campbell

CREST HAVEN – When summer days are gray, crowds flock to Cape May County Park and Zoo, and parking can be downright unbearable. 
The lion’s share of the remaining grassy area is covered by vehicles.
Park staff must be detailed to direct the cars and to keep an eagle’s eye on the visitors. Getting in and out can be slow as a tortoise.
Freeholders are well aware that one of the county’s top tourist destinations (after the beach and boardwalks) is the park and zoo in Swainton. They also know the sardine-like problem parking poses on dismal summer days.
That’s why the board listened intently to Bryan VanderGheynst, supervising engineer from NV5 in Parsippany give a presentation May 23 on alternatives to improve traffic circulation and parking.
The firm projected its concepts on the screen as VanderGheynst cited the virtues of each possibility.
The single kiosk at the Route 9 entrance, with one window that accepts donations, is part of the cue problem, he said. One of the first tasks the firm was to solve: Improve that.
To double the number of cars off Route 9 and into the park at the gate would be a “vast improvement,” he said.
Once those cars are in the park, VanderGheynst showed a variety of options to increase parking spaces while maintaining the green area and trees, minimizing impervious cover, and improving traffic flow.
One design called for 1,241 parking stalls, something that the firm was tasked to do as part of its proposal.
Another goal of the firm was to make enough parking so that no park staff would have to be used to direct traffic on those busy summer days.
Bus parking, used by schools for class trips, must be increased.
Also, it’s envisioned that a kiosk will be located at the park’s rear entrance on Court House-South Dennis Road. At present, there is no way to monitor how many vehicles enter the park there, according to Parks Director Ed Runyon.
Also to be considered is the amount of storm water runoff from the parking areas and other environmental considerations that are mandated to acquire a Coastal Areas Facilities Review Act (CAFRA) Permit.
No final decision was made on which design the board favored.

Spout Off

West Cape May – Blaming DEI for the California wildfires is classic Trumper behavior – making an assertion with no facts or real analysis with more than a whiff of racism. But I guess they would rather do that than…

Read More

Clermont – The saying is it is the Politicians Duty to Prepare for the Worst. So what are the Middle Twp. Mayor and Commissioners doing. Waiting for the Police Dept to loose 8 more officers to other departments…

Read More

Wildwood – God rained down fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah, destroying them. Maybe there is a God, and California is feeling his wrath.

Read More

Most Read

Print Editions

Recommended Articles

Skip to content