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Deal officials have officially scrapped a vote to allow permit-only parking along its waterfront streets.

“As of this morning the mayor reset the agenda to table the vote without a future date,” said Borough Clerk/Administrator Stephen Carasia. “There will be no public hearing or comment.”

Mayor Morris Ades could not be reached for comment.

The ordinance, introduced September 21, limited public parking on six streets east of Ocean Avenue along the beachfront between May 1 and October 31. Residents would be issued six parking permits per household, valid for one year.

But public outcry claiming the move was a method to keep the public off the newly federal and state funded replenished beaches got the attention of the Department of Environmental Protection [DEP].

“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.”

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.

The vote is slated to take place 9 a.m. Friday during the borough’s Board of Commissioner’s meeting. Carasia said any future consideration of the proposal would require a renotice to the public, an introduction and public hearing.

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

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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