THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, September 1, 1995 TAG: 9508310233
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 04 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BILL REED, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 126 lines
Wondering where to find a place to park so you can catch the Beach Boys, Sawyer Brown or Kool & The Gang this weekend at the 5th Street stage?
Well, join the rest of the 35,000 to 40,000 out-of-towners scrambling for spaces within a three-mile stretch of resort shoreline.
Several options are available, says Henry Ruiz, who heads the city's Parking Systems Management office.
First, five municipal lots and about 36 private lots of varying sizes on or adjacent to the Oceanfront collectively contain 2,714 spaces. If you've booked a hotel or motel room, your parking problems should be solved.
If a concert-goer is so inclined and he or she can get to available spaces early enough - one can park at Oceanfront for fees ranging from $4 a day upward.
Secondly, about 750 metered spaces are available on Atlantic and Pacific avenues and their side streets, from Rudee Inlet to 40th Street. The going rate is 75 cents per hour.
Thirdly, 2,870 on-street spaces are available for free in residential neighborhoods abutting the resort district, but beware the restrictions.
Most of them are in neighborhoods that are part of the city's Residential Parking Permit Program. The parking permit program encompasses an 80-block residential area bordering the resort strip.
This means that only residents of those areas and their guests can park at the curbside between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. daily - providing they have obtained the proper city permits and decals.
This weekend, especially, parking restrictions in the permit areas will be scrupulously enforced. Violators will be ticketed and or - in some cases - have their cars towed.
Since it's likely that parking spaces nearest the Oceanfront will be snapped up quickly during the weekend, latecomers will have access to 2,200 spaces at satellite lots opened at the Pavilion Convention Center on 19th Street and Seatack Elementary School on Birdneck Road. The fee at these lots is $3, which includes free shuttle buses to and from Oceanfront concert sites.
Shuttles will run continuously from these lots to the beachfront and back, said Ruiz.
Electronic message boards will be placed along the Virginia Beach-Norfolk Expressway and other major access routes to the Beach to advise motorists of traffic conditions and available parking at the Oceanfront or at satellite lots.
Oceanfront access to motorists will be limited once all parking spaces are full. Atlantic Avenue south of Ninth Street will be closed to ``general traffic not having a specific designation in that area,'' said Ruiz.
At the Oceanfront visitors can avail themselves of trolley service along Atlantic and Pacific avenues. Trolleys will run from noon to midnight daily over the weekend.
City parking lots available to beachfront visitors this weekend will be:
The Fourth Street lot, at the south end of Atlantic Avenue, abutting the Rudee Bridge. This lot was reopened in June and contains 105 spaces - five of them reserved for handicapped patrons. The fees are $3 on weekdays and $4 on weekends and holidays. Hours are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Two lots at 19th Street and Pacific Avenue. A little more than 400 spaces are available. Fees are $5 a day on weekends, $4 on weekdays. Hours are 8 a.m. to midnight.
The 25th Street lot, at Pacific Avenue. Fees are $5 daily, or $1 per hour up to $5 on weekends and $4 a day on weekdays. They are open around the clock.
The 31st Street lot on Atlantic Avenue at the Oceanfront. Fees are $7 daily on weekends, $6 on weekdays. Hours are 8 a.m. to midnight.
Motorists with city decals on their cars can park at municipal lots for $1 after 5 p.m. The special rates for residents won't apply in satellite lots at the Pavilion and Seatack Elementary, which will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Sunday and Monday. MEMO: Restrictions during the festival: No beach umbrellas; no bikes permitted
at the shows; no ticket refunds and no exchanges; no recording devices;
no glass bottles or alcohol allowed. Children 12 and under are free.
Lawn chairs are allowed at the 5th Street Stage only.
ILLUSTRATION: Three Dog Night, featuring Cory Wells and Danny Hutton, will be
on the 17th Street Stage Friday at 7 p.m. They were the last group
to play the Dome.
MUSIC SCHEDULE
The American Music Festival, one of the biggest music events on the
East Coast and featuring national and regional bands, continues
through Monday.
The music is along the Boardwalk and on the beach. Food and
beverage vendors will be available. Festival satellite parking
available at the Pavilion. A $3 charge for parking includes the Hall
Auto World Hassle Free Shuttle to and from the 5th Street Stage. For
hotel reservations, call 1-800-VA-BEACH. For local information, call
491-SUNN.
All shows are free except the Beach Boys, Sawyer Brown and Kool and
The Gang and the O'Jays. Tickets for those are $10 in advance from
Ticketmaster or $12.50 at the gate. Shows are at the 5th, 17th and
24th street stages. Some shows will have supporting acts before the
main event.
Today. Festival hours: 4 to 10 p.m. Three Dog Night, 17th Street
Stage, show time 7 p.m.; Delbert McClinton, 24th Street Stage, show
time 5 p.m.
Saturday. Festival hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Leon Russell, 24th
Street Stage, show time noon; Rare Earth, 17th Street Stage, show
time 6:30 p.m.; Beach Boys, 5th Street Stage, show time 2 p.m.
Sunday. Festival hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. The Band, 17th Street
Stage, show time 6:30 p.m.; The Rhondells, 24th Street Stage, show
time noon; Sawyer Brown, 5th Street Stage, show time 2 p.m.
Monday. Festival hours: noon to 7 p.m. Kingsmen, 17th Street
Stage, show time noon; Kool and the Gang and the O'Jays, 5th Street
Stage, show time 2 p.m.
by CNB