Camillo Opposes Bill That Would Ease Nonresident Beach Access

GREENWICH, CT — First Selectman Fred Camillo has issued written testimony against House Bill No. 6650, an act concerning public access to certain coastal resources, and the portion that would ease beach/park access for nonresidents

The Connecticut General Assembly's Planning & Development Committee is scheduled to have a public hearing on the bill at 11 a.m., on Friday.

In summary, the bill seeks:

To (1) clarify that certain goals and policies concerning coastal management shall apply to all public coastal resources, and (2) prohibit municipalities from restricting nonresident access to municipal parks and beaches that are accessible to residents or imposing fees for such access that are greater than fifty percent of any fees charges to residents.

"If we truly believe in local autonomy, then bills such as this conflict with this long held belief and tradition. In the case of my town, we do allow beach access to nonresidents, have reasonable entry fees, and welcome all to come to enjoy them," Camillo said in his written testimony for Friday.

Camillo went on to say that Greenwich's fees to nonresidents are both "fair and necessary" since the town maintains its parks and beaches without state or federal assistance.

"They are also in line with our neighboring communities. To demand and mandate that we lower fees would amount to basically asking our town's residents to subsidize nonresident usage," Camillo said. "We also have capacity limits that are driven by concern for public safety."

The agenda for Friday's public hearing along with information on how to watch or sign up to speak can be found here.