Dorchester County residents ask council to extend Ragged Point Road no‑camping signage to daytime

At a Dorchester County Traffic Safety Committee meeting, residents on Ragged Point Road asked the committee to ask the County Council to extend existing dusk‑to‑dawn restrictions on the 52 and 5300 blocks of Ragged Point Road to apply at all hours. The residents said daytime parking and camping near the narrow embankment have continued since signs were installed in 2022 and are affecting neighbors’ sense of safety and use of property.

The request was presented by Tracy Orlando, a resident of 5247 Ragged Point Road, who told the committee that the nighttime signs installed in 2022 helped, “but we’re still having the same issue during the day.” Orlando said visitors are parking partly in the travel lane, setting up chairs and coolers for hours, leaving litter and sometimes refusing to leave, and that neighbors avoid sending children outside because of strangers near private driveways.

County staff and committee members discussed enforcement limits and competing public interests. Jerry Jenkins, Dorchester County manager, said the county promotes public access to the water for recreation and noted enforcement is separate from sign placement. Jenkins recommended denial from an enforcement perspective, saying the county should not broadly block access to the bay for people who use that spot because they do not have other ways to fish. Committee members also noted the sheriff’s office reviewed the materials but the sheriff was not present at the meeting and enforcement decisions rest with the elected sheriff.

Committee members and staff described the affected area as roughly 1,100 feet of embankment that borders the water, with a narrow roadway and limited shoulders. Public works staff said the location is isolated and that signage alone will not eliminate behavior; enforcement would still be required in the event of violations. The resident asked that the signage be changed in a narrowly targeted way rather than a countywide restriction.

Rather than deciding the request, the committee asked staff to place the item on the full Dorchester County Council agenda for consideration at the council’s meeting that evening. The committee did not take a formal vote on the restriction itself; the action recorded was a referral to the full council for further consideration and possible action.