Beach Parking Fees in Fairfield County, CT – Exclusionary Pricing for Non-Residents

Exorbitant parking fees to access coastal parklands have become the norm in Fairfield County it seems.  Was recently faced with this when I attempted to go for a short walk at one of my former kayaking launch spots - Norwalk's Calf Pasture Beach - they wanted $65 to park on a cold late September day.    This price-shock experience at Calf Pasture Beach motivated me to look into the non-resident parking fees now charged (2022) at a number of shoreline/beach parks in Fairfield County, the details are listed below.  

Some years back a Stamford resident who enjoyed running on the beach, Brenden Leydon, had a similar experience in Greenwich, CT.  Leydon was prohibited from entering Greenwich Point Park so he sued the Town of Greenwich. (See the book "Free the Beaches"  which recounts this case and the larger issue).  In response to the court ruling in that case, which found in favor of Leydon, Greenwich reopened its beaches to non-residents but began charging them much higher fees than residents – orders-of-magnitude higher fees, effectively creating exclusionary pricing for non-residents.

As the years go by, access to land bordering the nation's coastlines and waterbodies becomes increasingly concentrated in the hands of a few.  And so, parks and public boat launches are an increasingly vital resource to prevent the complete exclusion of boating, fishing, swimming, and coastal recreating.  Nevertheless, use of and access to the waters of the U.S. is a ‘right’ of all U.S. citizens enshrined in various laws and legal decisions. This right of access is called the “Public Trust Doctrine”, and began (according to Wikipedia) with ancient laws of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian which held that the sea, the shores of the sea, the air and running water was common to everyone.  In the United States, the Public Trust Doctrine limits the rights of ocean front property owners to exclude the public below the mean high tide line.  One could argue that a $65 parking fee is exclusionary and unlawful according to the Public Trust Doctrine… 

On the other hand, perhaps pressures on these beachfront parks are extreme such that a $65 parking fee is a legitimate mechanism to reduce crowding in summer?   One argument against that position is that parking fees are not as high at the shoreline parks I frequent in New York – parks that arguably face more pressure from crowds than those in Fairfield County.  Public beaches in Westchester County and NYC typically charge only $10 to park in-season (Glen Island, Orchard Beach, Playland).  Parking fees for Town beaches in Fairfield County are all $40-and-up for non-residents.  The exceptions to this “rule” are the Connecticut State Parks which charge non-residents a more reasonable parking fee ($15 weekdays, $22 weekends).   Note also that the beach “season” varies considerably, from a minimum of Memorial Day to Labor Day, up to a maximum of April 1st until October 31st.   So, the take-home message is to visit these parks in the off-season when they’re free to park if all you plan to do is take a walk or launch a kayak.

List of Parking Fees charged for Non-Residents at Long Island Sound Shoreline Parks in NY and Fairfield, CT (listed from west-to-east) as of May 2022:

1. Orchard Beach NYC: parking fee charged May 28^th (Saturday) until Sept. 12^th, parking fee is $8 weekdays, $10 weekends.
2. Glen Island New Rochelle: parking fee charged weekends only in May and Sept until Sept. 25^th; then daily May 28 through Labor Day. $10 for resident non-pass holder, plus car-top launch fee of $10 w/out County Pass.
3. Rye Town Beach Park: parking fee charged from May 1 to September 27. $5 for every 2 hours on weekdays (mon-thurs), $10 for every 2 hours weekends (fri-sun). 
4. Playland Amusement Park:  season dates not yet published, amusement park under construction as of spring 2022. Website says it will be $12/car to park weekdays, $15/car sat/sun. The kayak launch area is currently occupied by construction trailers. Access uncertain until new park leasing company, Standard Amusements, completes construction and opens park…
5. Byram/Greenwich Beaches: Park Passes or daily parking fee required from May 1 - October 31. $40/vehicle plus $9/person.
6. Stamford Cove Island Park: parking fee charged from May 1st through September 30^th; week days $42.50, weekends $69.00 per car.
7. Weed Beach, Darien: beach permit stickers required mid-April through late September,  non-resident daily parking fee is $53/vehicle plus $70 boat launch.
8. Pear Tree Beach, Darien: beach permit stickers required Memorial Day through Labor Day,  non-resident daily parking fee is $53/vehicle plus $70 boat launch
9. Bayley Beach, Rowayton/Norwalk: Fee charged from Memorial Day Saturday until September 15, (non-resident) vehicles without permits $25 (weekdays); $30 weekend (non-holiday).
10. Norwalk Calf Pasture Beach:  Parking fees are in effect from May 15 to October 15, non-resident parking fee is $40/car weekdays, $65/car weekends."Calf Pasture Beach, Veteran's Park, Taylor Farm, and Cranbury Park parking fees are in effect from May 15 to October 15 every year." (Nov. 2022)
11. Compo Beach, Westport: daily fee is charged to park from May 1 through Sept. 30, $45/car weekdays, $70/car weekends.
12. Sherwood Island State Park: parking fees required for visitors with out of state registered vehicles from April 1 until October 31; $15 weekdays, $22 weekends.
13. Burying Hill Beach, Westport: town of Westport parking emblem required Memorial Day to Labor Day. Non-CT-resident fee is $35/car weekdays, $50/car weekends. (NOTE: Town of Westport website says "no kayaking or canoeing".  Unclear if this applies year-round)
14. Southport Beach, Fairfield: from Memorial Day Saturday (May 28^th 2022) to Labor Day only residents with a beach sticker are permitted to park in the lot. There are no daily fees.
15. Sasco Beach Park, Fairfield: from Memorial Day Saturday (May 28^th)  to Labor Day only residents with a beach sticker are permitted to park in the lot. There are no daily fees.
16. South Pine Creek Beach, Fairfield:  from Memorial Day Saturday (May 28^th) to Labor Day only residents with a beach sticker are permitted to park in the lot. There are no daily fees.
17. Penfield Beach, Fairfield CT: from Memorial Day – Labor Day, non-resident daily parking fee of $40 weekdays, $50 weekends.
18. Jennings Beach, Fairfield CT: parking fee Memorial Day to Labor Day. Beach sticker or daily fee of $40 (Monday - Friday) and $50 (Weekends and Holidays).
19. Seaside Park Beach, Bridgeport: parking fee Memorial Day – Labor Day. Season sticker or daily fee of $50 weekdays or $60 weekends for cars w/ out-of-state registration.
20. Long Beach, Stratford (Pleasure Beach, Bridgeport): parking fee Saturday before Memorial Day until Labor Day. Daily parking fee for non-residents is $20 Monday through Thursday, $40 Friday through Sunday and holidays, for Long Beach and Short Beach.
21. Short Beach Park, Stratford: parking fee Saturday before Memorial Day until Labor Day. Fee fo non-residents is $20 per day Monday through Thursday;  $40 per day Friday through Sunday and holidays, for Long Beach and Short Beach.
22. Charles Wheeler Wildlife Mgt Area, Milford: off Court St., free but muddy outside of high tide.
23. Housatonic River State Boat Launch (under I-95): free but can be crowded.
24. Walnut Beach and Gulf Beach, Milford: parking fee from May 1 to September 30 non-residents $40 per day.
25. Silver Sands State Park, Milford: $15 weekdays, $22 weekends parking fees are required for visitors with out-of-state registered vehicles from April 1 until October 31.