Chafee: Beach Fee Hikes Won’t Hurt Tourism

Gov. Lincoln Chafee said he doesn’t believe that the higher state beach fees set to go into effect July 1 will hurt tourism.

The governor spoke as part of a roundtable discussion with Patch staffers held on June 23 at the State House.

“The beach fee increases still keep us lower than some of the town beaches,” Chafee explained, “and that hasn’t discouraged the town beaches from being used.”

Beginning on Friday, the cost for season passes for Rhode Island residents will double to $60; weekday parking will go up from $6 to $10, weekend fees from $7 to $14.

Out-of-state visitors will pay $20 for weekday parking (up from the current $12 fee) and $28 for weekends (previously $14), with the charge for non-resident season passes rising to $120 from its current $60.

At Goddard Park, the situation is a bit different. There is no entrance fee there, due to a stipulation when the land was given to the state. And that will not change going forward, conceivably increasing its popularity.

Chafee also said that state has “the most gorgeous beaches anywhere,” which he feels will still draw their share of tourists.

On the general topic of tourism, Chafee said he feels that local tourism councils should share a common message about the state as a whole — while still preserving their abilities to promote their own communities.

“One of the challenges on tourism is, in Rhode Island, we’ve Balkanized the tourism councils,” Chafee explained. “They’re all marketing Rhode Island a little differently.”

The governor also said it was his “personal goal” to try and unify the message among the local groups.

“They’re all going to market their districts a little bit differently, but also include some kind of generic marketing scheme for the state,” Chafee explained. “Just to convince them that we need to have an overall scheme for Rhode Island included in all their marketing is in everybody’s best interest.”

The accompanying video shows additional coverage from the governor's discussion of tourism.