HUNTINGTON BEACH : Parking Discount at Beaches Extended

Reduced parking fees will continue to be offered at Huntington and Bolsa Chica state beaches through the end of the summer season, state park officials have announced.

Don Ito, park superintendent, said the $5 day-use fee will be extended through Labor Day. The normal fee of $6 per vehicle will go back into effect Sept. 6.

Ito said the day-use fee was reduced in May as a way to increase park attendance.

“We had noticed there was a decline in the number of cars parking in the state beach area,” Ito said.

Ito said the drop in beach visitors using state parking lots could have been caused by the amount of the fee or the recession.

However, he said, the weather also plays a major role in attendance. According to Ito, poor weather caused attendance to decline in May despite the discounted fee.

“May was a horrible month for weather,” he said. “We were below the amount of tickets sold for last year.”

But in June and July, day-use ticket sales increased by 25%, prompting the decision to extend the reduced fee, Ito said.

Ito noted that with the recent sunny weather, weekend beach visitors are filling parking lots at the two beaches.