Preventing surfers from changing their clothes in public and building bathrooms for beachgoers’ use are among suggestions Higgins Beach residents offered Town Manager Tom Hall regarding the town’s possible acquisition of private property to maintain public parking near the beach.

About 36 residents met Monday night with Hall and Town Council Chairman Michael Wood at Town Hall in an informal public meeting to learn more about the town’s potential purchase of two adjacent land lots from the Vasile Family at Higgins Beach.

The town is working with the Trust for Public Land and the Vasiles to buy land at the popular beach, where parking is extremely limited. Monday night was the first public discussion the town has had with Higgins Beach residents.

The Vasiles’ property, which is used as a parking lot for beachgoers, is sandwiched between Pearl Street and Ocean Avenue.

“We’re probably the biggest abuters on the Pearl Street side,” said resident Nicholas Alfiero. “We are pleased that the parking lot will remain a parking lot, because we feel it’s important to have access to that beach, and not become some sort of housing.

“In the past, however, we’ve seen surfers at 5:30 a.m., 6 a.m., changing in the parking lot, down to their skivvies or whatever, and we’ve seen people going to the bathroom where they shouldn’t be,” he added.

Other residents whose property abuts the parking lot echoed Alfiero’s sentiments and suggested the town change the small house that is included in the deal into a bathroom and changing area for beachgoers.

“We welcome a bathroom and changing area,” said Jesse Abbott, who lives on Pearl Street.

Residents also said that surfers pull into the parking lot early in the morning playing their music loudly, or walk down Pearl Street speaking loudly. They wondered if the town could prevent the noise.

Hall said the town would increase police patrols to prevent unwanted noise or problems.

“The town owns and operates a 290-space parking lot in Hurd Park near Pine Point,” Hall said. “We have found that increased police patrols work there, and we think we could do the same at Higgins Beach.”

Alfiero suggested the town build a higher wall on the Pearl Street side and eliminate the exits from the parking lot onto Pearl Street, forcing people to enter and exit only from the Ocean Avenue side.

Nick Napolitano, who lives on Ocean Avenue, suggested that the fence be built on the Ocean Avenue side, because he has seen surfers relieving themselves and changing on that side of the street, too.

One person, Jared Thurber, who doesn’t live in Higgins Beach but does surf there, said he didn’t think surfers caused as much of a problem as residents suggested.

“I think the stories of surfers urinating and changing in public are a bit exaggerated,” Thurber said. “I surf there and I have never seen anything like that. I know I try to be respectful.”

Residents also asked if the lot would be paved, if it would be open year around and if season passes for parking would be given.

Hall said the town was considering paving the lot and striping in about 75 parking spots for easier parking control. The lot would not be open all year, and Hall said he wasn’t sure if season parking passes would be available.

“This is really to open dialogue between residents and the town,” Hall said. “We want to know what suggestions you have and what questions we can answer for you, if we have the answers at this time.”

The Vasile family charges people between $5 and $10 to park on the property.

It’s unclear how much it will cost the town to purchase the land at this point, Hall said. The assessed value of the lots combined is $1.4 million.

In June, the Town Council unanimously approved a memo of understanding that allows Hall to continue negotiations with the Trust for Public Land and the Vasile family.

The Trust for Public Land, a national organization that buys land for conservation, late last year approached the town about acquiring the Vasiles’ property. Since then, Hall has had several meetings with the Vasiles to discuss buying the land.

If a purchase deal were struck, it would prevent a private developer from buying the land and eliminating the only public parking for the beach.

“I’m in favor of it,” said Susan Thompson, who lives on Ocean Avenue. It’s a public beach, as far as I’m concerned.”

Hall said he hopes to have a public hearing on the matter scheduled within the next two months. Money for a possible purchase would come from the town’s land bond budget of $2.4 million, which is earmarked for land acquisitions that would benefit the town.