NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. — Residents of New Smyrna Beach got to learn more about the results of a parking study conducted by a local engineering firm LTG Engineering & Planning to address the city’s growing parking demand.

What You Need To Know

  • An engineering study conducted in New Smyrna Beach laid out causes and recommended improvements for the city’s growing parking problem

  • Parking and beach traffic in New Smyrna Beach were the two main concerns addressed in the study

  • Population growth caused by in-migration is the principal cause for parking demand and growing beach traffic, stated the study

  • Engineers recommend city looks at technology investments and a mobility department to address those concerns

The six-month study provided residents an idea of their latest parking statistics and a series of recommendations to tackle its two main problems — parking and beach traffic — which have gotten significantly worse in recent years.

Both require different approaches and engineering experts say there first needs to be a discussion on how to address New Smyrna Beach’s growing demand.

New Smyrna Beach officials have been trying to address their street parking problem for a long time. Many of the city’s residents say they fear that it is losing its charm because of the parking challenges.

Audia Ricker is among the residents who has lived in the New Smyrna Beach area since the 1980s and she wants her city to find a better solution to parking and beach traffic.

“One of the reasons New Smyrna Beach is so popular is because of its enduring charm that attracts so many visitors not only locally, not only in the United States but all over the world,” says Ricker.

Mayor of the City of New Smyrna Beach, Fred Cleveland, recognizes that residents like Ricker want to preserve the area’s charm.

But he says the parking problem here is not going away anytime soon and will only get worse given the area’s growing popularity.

That is why he was looking forward to hearing the results of the parking study led by the LTG Engineering & Planning firm.

“We’re no longer a secret and that’s sad for many residents who’ve been here their whole lives but now that we’ve been discovered, we can’t put our head in the sand, we have to find aggressive, logic, math and science based solutions,” explained Cleveland.

The study focused its attention on two main streets in New Smyrna Beach, with the first being Flagler Avenue and the second, Canal Street.

Findings revealed that daily traffic on Canal Street popped up to 7,600 in 2023, which was up 400 vehicles from the previous year.

On Flagler Avenue, there were more than 10,000 vehicles year over the year between 2021 and 2022 but those numbers dropped down to 8,100 in 2023 because less people were driving down Flagler Avenue following 2022 hurricanes Ian and Nicole.

The study took a closer look at some of the causes contributing to growing parking demand and beach traffic such as population growth in the New Smyrna Beach area, which experts say is a fundamental indicator of parking demand.

The study also found that vehicle ownership numbers were significantly high in proportion to the number of residents living in New Smyrna Beach.

Not to mention, 2,100 cars is the reasonable capacity for how many cars can fit on the beach the New Smyrna jurisdiction, according to Parking Consultant Project Manager Kerry Karl.

Unsurprisingly, experts also noted that beach traffic was significantly higher on weekends.

Some residents like Christel Saylor who has been in this area for 30 years says that limitations on weekend beachgoers should also be considered to address these problems.

“Especially for people traveling here for the day. Residents, I think, we have a good handle on things but it’s on the weekends when we get so many visitors that parking is really tough,” says Saylor.

Engineers say managing the area’s growing demand is possible but they explain that city officials will need to address two key factors first.

Karl says investments in technology are necessary to better manage the number of people going to the beaches.

The second recommended solution is to introduce a mobility department that would enable employees to coordinate for that sole purpose.

Still, many think it’s going to take a joint effort from everyone to get this problem under control.

“I don’t think there’s going to be an easy solution, I think everyone is going to have to compromise in some way,” says Saylor.

Residents who attended Thursday evening’s Parking Public Forum had the opportunity to provide their input to “put together more comprehensive short-term long-term game plan” on various billboards which will be compiled and made into a final report for city officials to consult on this September.