One of the nicest parts of Fort Pierce, Florida is Jetty Park, located along both the Atlantic Ocean and the Fort Pierce Inlet, and seen in the photograph on the left. Fort Pierce is located on both Hutchinson Island, which is where Jetty Park is located, and the mainland. The island part of the city is fairly upscale, and the city has done a wonderful job of restoring its historic downtown on the mainland. However, other parts of the city west of U.S. 1 are not nearly as affluent.
And that is why Fort Pierce's plan to charge for parking at Jetty Park and other beaches to pay for park maintenance has become so controversial. One local columnist has pointed out that it is the well-off who live close to the ocean, and they can easily walk or bike to the beach, while the people who live on the other side of U.S. 1, who can least afford it, will be the ones who fork out the parking fees. Also, the city intends to hire a private company, PCI Municipal Services, to implement the paid parking system, a company that is facing lawsuits from several cities in South Carolina. Evidently PCI gets a percentage of the revenue raised and therefore has an incentive to be very aggressive in issuing tickets, which might result in many angry citizens. I myself plan to only get out of the car at Stuart Beach, which is free for all, once those parking fees kick in. Free, as everyone knows, is my favorite price point.
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