Milford wants to get a handle on Mott Street swimming hole

Milford. Crowds and parking were overflowing last summer. Mayor Sean Strub said, “We’re better off not doing what we did last year, which was there was a problem and then we reacted to it.”

| 04 Mar 2021 | 12:00

The Milford Borough Council is looking into problems at the swimming hole near Mott Street, after hearing concerns about intensive use of the borough’s property there last summer.

Council President Frank Tarquinio said he wants to make sure people get to use the area but wants to make sure the place doesn’t get overcrowded.

There wasn’t enough parking to accommodate all the people who congregated there, especially when the park service closed Milford Beach. Tarquinio asked the council if they wanted to consider changes.

“I think rather than do something piecemeal, we should look at what we want to do and set it up,” he said.

A parking ordinance may be difficult to enact.

“Last summer, we tried to do a parking ordinance on Mott Street, and it wasn’t well received,” Tarquinio said. “And we also talked about down by the river property to try and limit it, so it didn’t become an overflow when they close the beach.”

Mayor Sean Strub suggested limiting parking on Mott Street to residents only, and that as Tarquinio said last year, people were parking all the way to the corner.

Tarquinio said he wanted to be proactive this year.

“We’re better off not doing what we did last year, which was there was a problem and then we reacted to it,” he said.