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The Deal Mayor and Board of Commissioners have opted to table a permit only parking along its waterfront streets, according to The Associated Press [AP].

The Department of Environmental Protection told the AP Tuesday, borough officials said they were tabling the ordinance that would have restricted public parking on six streets east of Ocean Avenue.

Opponents said the proposed restriction was a method of keeping the public off the 1.3 mile community’s newly replenished beaches.

Deal is among the last Monmouth County communities to undergo beach replenishment post Hurricane Sandy. The Army Corps of Engineer supervised the $40 million project that pumped 1.4 million cubic yards of sand between Deal and Loch Arbour.

“We have concerns (that) it may impact public access, and it could conflict with the agreement signed with the U.S. Army Corps project,” DEP spokesman Bob Considine told the AP. “We also simply want to ensure that we work toward providing more public access and not limiting access.”

A legal brief challenging the legality of the move and petitions formed by area anglers, surfers, and those in support of unfettered beach access were formed.

Members of the local Surfrider Foundation, American Littoral Society, and area fishing clubs, like the Neptune and Asbury charters, were expected to attend the meeting.

For more information on both sides of the argument, visit Change.org, Surfrider Foundation, Stripers Online, and a supporting Change.org petition. 

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