OCEAN CITY – Half of the Public Safety Building parking lot on 65th Street will become paid parking for Ocean City visitors and residents starting this summer.

Along with the Mayor and City Council’s decision to implement paid parking on 146th Street from Coastal Highway to the beach, 49th Street from Coastal Highway to the beach, 131st Street from Coastal Highway to Sinepuxent Ave. and on the west side of Philadelphia Avenue from South 1st to North Division streets, the city is also planning to begin charging for parking in a portion of the municipal lot at the Public Safety Building on 65th Street. All moves are designed to increase revenue and help close a budget gap in the FY14 Financial Operating Plan.

City Engineer Terry McGean updated the Mayor and City Council on the plan to initiate paid parking in the eastern half of the Public Safety Building parking lot, while the other half closest to the building itself will be dedicated to public safety and district court employees and visitors. The parking lot is currently divided into two halves with a drive aisle running north/south.

Paid parking will only be enforced during “off hours”, which are 5 p.m. to 7 a.m. Monday through Friday, and all day on Saturday, Sunday and on holidays.

The west half of the lot will be posted as “Parking for Public Safety Building and District Court Employees and Visitors Only” and those spaces will striped with yellow paint. Employees will be issued a parking pass and enforcement will performed by the police department.

The paid parking half of the lot includes 101 parking spaces, excluding the spaces used by the MVA Mobile Office. Staff has estimates $20,000 in additional revenue per year from the lot, which is already included in the balanced FY14 proposed budget.

“It is a good idea and something we need to move forward with … make sure we sign it and let people know it’s available for beach parking as well on Saturday and Sunday,” Council President Lloyd Martin said.

Paid parking in Ocean City is currently in affect now on the weekends and will become enforced daily starting the Friday before Memorial Day weekend.