Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Parking topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
AutoConnect reports $636,000 in fees; Sunset Beach council hears safety, access and private‑lot concerns
Summary
AutoConnect told Sunset Beach council its paid‑parking program logged more than 43,000 vehicle entries and $636,000 in collected fees and fines, with roughly $445,000 to be delivered to the town; residents raised safety and private‑lot concerns and council directed staff to revisit rates and season timing before December.
AutoConnect representatives told the Sunset Beach Town Council on Oct. 6 that the town’s first season of paid parking recorded more than 43,000 vehicle entries and $636,000 in total fees and fines, with about $445,000 either delivered to the town or scheduled for delivery.
“We had a total of over 43,000 parked vehicles that were recorded,” AutoConnect’s Jim Varner said, and he added the company’s audited numbers show “the total collected fees and fines that we collected was 636,000 of which 445 have been or will be tomorrow, for September, delivered to the town.” Alyssa Irons, AutoConnect’s vice president of operations, added the company issued roughly 3,500 citations this year and that by September the citation rate had dropped from about 8 percent in April to roughly 5 percent.
The presentation drew questions from council and members of the public on citation handling, resident permit usage and enforcement. Varner said the company counts a vehicle the first time a season permit tag is scanned on a day and does not double‑count repeat visits the same day; he also described a compliance rate AutoConnect prints at “almost 86%.” Irons told the council that many citations are refunded or converted to warnings when customers report mistakes such as incorrect license‑plate entries.
Public speakers urged the council to consider safety and equity implications. Chris Bauman, who identified himself as a Sunset Beach resident, asked the council to reconsider the perpendicular parking configuration at 40th and Main Street, saying it “creates a real issue for fire trucks” and that property damage has occurred since the change. “My ask is that we go back to parallel parking in that area,” Bauman said, citing photographs he submitted to the town.
Business owner Gary Matthews told the council he owns a private pier lot near Main Street and said representatives from AutoConnect and a private company had been on his lot after his lease expired. Matthews said he was concerned about trespass and about different private rates undercutting the town’s parking program, and he asked the council to clarify lease and access arrangements.
Council members pressed AutoConnect on next steps for 2026. Varner recommended no immediate rate changes, noting the town is “competitive with Brunswick County,” and said decisions on resident permit pricing and season length are ultimately for council to set. Council discussion ended with direction to staff to revisit resident permit fees and the length of the paid season before the December meeting; no rate change was adopted at the Oct. 6 meeting.
The council did not take a formal vote on any changes to the contract during the meeting; AutoConnect staff and council members said additional operational details — including whether the town will change the resident permit price — will appear on future agendas.
