Merimbula Beach Street parking plan defeated in 3-5 council vote

A proposal to restore 58 parking spaces on Beach Street, Merimbula, including two accessible spaces and a taxi bay, was defeated by Bega Valley Shire Council in a 3-5 vote on 21 October.

Councillors Mitchell Nadin, Peggy Noble and David Porter supported the motion. Simon Daly, Russell Fitzpatrick, Peter Haggar, Clair Mudaliar and Helen O’Neil voted against it. Deputy Mayor Tony Allen was absent.

The plan covered parking on both sides of the RSL memorial. West of the memorial, it proposed 90-degree nose-to-kerb parking with 33 regular spaces, two accessible spaces and one taxi space. East of the memorial, it proposed another 23 regular spaces. Each space was to have a depth of 6.4 metres.

The motion also sought planning and approval for a raised, trafficable pavement beside Twyford Hall. The area would have included lighting and operated as a shared pedestrian and vehicle space, with design and signs intended to calm vehicle movements.

It called for the return of parallel kerbside parking on the northern side of Beach Street and restoration of two-way traffic with traffic-calming measures. It also sought an updated landscape plan and an approval process to put power lines underground between Market Street and Alice Street.

The motion acknowledged that the current traffic and parking changes were not a trial within the existing grant funding and project scope. It also acknowledged that further changes would require internal funding, with the general fund or internal reserves suggested as possible sources.

Council noted staff’s intention to prepare an interim report on the project, but no date was specified. The report was requested to include plans for the proposed parking restoration and other Beach Street changes. None of those changes was approved by the vote.