Thursday, October 1, 2026
The most emphatic voice of opposition to the Long Beach City Council’s proposal to raise beach fees on Tuesday night came from one of its own members, Roy Lester.
During a two-hour public hearing on the council’s plan to increase beach fees in an effort to make up a shortfall of about $1.1 million, Lester said the new proposed fees were too high, and noted that the developer Engel Burman, the firm that is building condominiums and apartments on the Superblock, has received credits and tax breaks.
“We’re talking about a 70 percent increase [in beach fees] over two years, and we’re giving a developer credits?” Lester said. He was cheered by some in the audience. Two years ago, a family resident beach pass cost $70; this year the council is proposing an increase to $115.
Lester called the proposed increases “unbelievable,” and said the city should seek other means of raising funds, such as charging non-residents more to use the beach.
On Wednesday morning, he said he would vote against increasing the cost of beach passes. “Absolutely,” he said. “It’s shocking. They can’t find one penny to cut anywhere. All I’ve been saying is, stop spending so much money.”
The council tabled a vote on the proposed increases until a later meeting, but no date was set.
Under the proposal, the resident family plan — the most widely used plan — would jump nearly 27 percent from 2021, to $115. The cost for non-resident families would rise about 20 percent, to $225. The resident individual fee is proposed to remain at $70. The daily resident’s fee would also hold at $12.
Councilmember John Bendo proposed that the city charge those who come to the beach after 4 p.m. a reduced fee of $6. Lifeguards are on duty until 6 p.m., and most drownings occur after they leave the beach. A discounted fee after 4 p.m. might encourage more people to come to the beach when guards are still on duty, Bendo reasoned, instead of waiting until after it closes.
He defended the proposed increases. “We have to make tough decisions,” Bendo said. “The math is showing that the simple fact is, we are spending more to run the beach than we take in.”
City comptroller Ina Resnick gave an overview of the beach fee situation, and said that bad weather and the continuing coronavirus pandemic were primarily responsible for a decline in Beach Park revenue last year. The city, Resnick said, is expecting to see an increase in beach pass sales this year, given the decline across Nassau County of cases of Covid-19.
“But we still need to raise fees to run the beach,” she said, adding that the cost of operating the beach is about $5 million a year.
Residents appeared divided on the issue.
Kathleen O’Leary, a long-time resident, said that not all families would be able to afford the fee increases, and she suggested raising fees for non-resident families.
Jay Brick, who said he had never attended a public hearing, said he wanted the council to “look at the big picture.” He noted that traffic on Austin Boulevard, which leads to and from Long Beach, is often snarled. And, he said, the City Council is considering installing parking meters in the central business district.
“Why would people come to Long Beach [if they have to] pay added beach fees and parking fees?” Brick said.
Nat Epstein said that raising beach fees amounts to a tax, and that doing so “will chase away business” from the city.
Ann Flomenhaft said the council should keep in mind higher food and gas prices when considering raising beach fees. She suggested approving the retail sale of marijuana in the city. The council has voted to opt-out of a state program allowing such sales.
Leah Tozer, co-chair of the Long Beach Chamber of Commerce, has said she didn’t have a problem with the proposed beach pass fees, and that she was “personally fine with the given numbers.”
City Manager Donna Gayden said that residents’ comments would be taken into consideration before the council takes any action.
