Springville City will require parking permits for Wayne Bartholomew Family Park beginning on Friday, July 21. While Springville residents can obtain a free parking permit from the city offices, non-residents will be charged $10 per day to park at the popular beach.
“One of the main reasons this is being done is to make sure it is sustainable,” said Rod Oldroyd, administrative services manager for Springville City. “This park is more popular than it was anticipated to be. …We need to ensure that the waters are safe and the place stays clean.”
When Springville announced the parking change on its Facebook page on July 12, the announcement quickly grew to the most-viewed post the city had ever had. In fact, the number of views exceeded 2.5 times the population of Springville.
After the response on social media, Oldroyd expected people to protest the change at Tuesday night’s city council meeting. But not one person stood up to complain.
“(The park) is nice. It’s close to town. It’s easy to get to. There’s a very nice beach. It has pavilions there,” Olroyd said. “We just want to make sure it is manageable and it’s starting not to be. …What we need to do is build a larger pond, which isn’t doable.”
Before making the decision to charge out-of-towners, Springville conducted a 10-day survey. From that survey, the city learned over 80 percent of people attending Wayne Bartholomew Family Park were from outside of Springville.
“We just want to make sure it is manageable and it’s starting not to be. …What we need to do is build a larger pond, which isn’t doable.” — Rod Oldroyd, Springville administrative services manager
“It’s not that we don’t like that, we do,” Oldroyd said. “But we feel like we need to curtail some of the activity and we want to give our citizens the first chance to be there.”
Wayne Bartholomew Family Park, located at 1090 S. 2900 East in Springville, open in June 2015. The park includes a beach, pavilions, a concession stand, beach volleyball nets and more amenities.
Springville residents can pick up their parking permits at the city offices located at 110 S. Main in Springville, Utah. In order to get a parking permit, residents need to provide proof of residency such as a driver’s license or mail that shows their name with their home address along with a photo ID. These passes will be valid through the end of the season.
Non-residents can purchase their $10 day pass at the park.
“We’re glad we have (Wayne Bartholomew Family Park). We want people to enjoy it,” Oldroyd said. …”It’s still a value to go all day at a beach.”
The parking permits work for the 140 stalls provided in the parking lot as well as the dirt parking lot by the park.
Those who made a pavilion reservation prior to July 12 can receive a temporary parking pass by calling (801) 489-2770.
Wayne Bartholomew Family Park is open Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. – 6 p.m., Friday through Saturday from 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. and is closed on Sunday. Learn more about the park at springville.org.