Contentious meeting to discuss Phillips Beach parking situation

SWAMPSCOTT – Traffic Study Committee Chairman Dave Castellarin said the forum to discuss additional parking at Phillips Beach was as expected – crowded and confrontational.The meeting at the Senior Center Wednesday had over 30 people in attendance, with a mix of beach neighbors and residents from other parts of town. Castellarin, Department of Public Works Director Gino Cresta and Swampscott Deputy Fire Chief Jim Potts heard complaints and ideas from residents so they make a recommendation to the Board of Selectmen as to whether more recreation parking should be added to the area.Castellarin said there was no simple solution to the problem. “Whatever decision we make here affects the other side of town,” he said.Some neighbors of the beach and other residents agreed safety was an important factor in keeping the parking to a minimum, complaining that cars speed down the road and parked cars limited visibility from drivers coming out of driveways and around corners.Al Bargoot complained that the parked cars and lack of sidewalks forced him and his family to walk in the street. “I used to park cars at Revere Beach in the fifties and I have never seen anything this bad for the tax-paying public and I walk to the beach,” said Bargoot.Some friction occurred some residents from other parts of town felt beach residents weren?t being fair about sharing the streets for parking. Mark Wolinski received applause from others in the meeting when he said told beach neighbors to allow other Swampscott residents to be able to park in front of their houses. “You don?t the road, we pay for it too,” he said. “If you want to be in a gated community, choose one, but you don?t live in one.”Arthur Goldberg, a neighbor of the beach, said those complaining about the lack of parking were lazy. “You not talking about lack of access talking about lack of convenience,” he said, later adding, “It?s more convenient to park in front of my house.”Many agreed that enforcement was the issue, because the $25 parking ticket was not enough to deter residents from Marblehead, Nahant and even out-of-staters from illegally parking in resident-only zones, some said.Castellarin said the committee will meet again in two or four weeks to discuss their findings, including looking into adding more stop signs down at the beach.