OLD ORCHARD BEACH — The town has added metered parking on East Grand Avenue, but has decided not to move forward with a proposal to create diagonal parking on Old Orchard Street.

The council had considered changing parking on one side of Old Orchard Street to diagonal parking, and extending parking on the ocean side of East Grand Avenue from Boisvert Street to Cleaves Street, to Kinney Avenue to Walnut Street. The proposal was considered as a way to increase town revenue through additional metered parking.

The council decided Tuesday not to create diagonal parking on Old Orchard Street. Police Chief Dana Kelley had, earlier this month, told the council that after researching how far the proposed diagonal spaces would extend into the street, it wasn’t worth the public safety concerns to add 15 parking spaces.

The council voted 4-1 Tuesday, with Councilors Kenneth Blow and Jay Kelley absent, to approve the metered parking on East Grand Avenue.

Councilor Michael Tousignant said he voted against the measure after reading a letter from Paul Rousseau, who owns a hotel at 35 East Grand Ave. Rousseau said in the letter that extending parking on East Grand Avenue has been discussed multiple times over the years, and each time there has been opposition. Rousseau said he was concerned about the noise level disturbing his guests, and there wouldn’t be room for fire trucks to pass through the street.

Kelley, the police chief, said the fire chief had examined the East Grand Avenue area, and he did not see any problem with fire truck passage if parking were extended.

Councilor Malorie Pastor said there aren’t too many beach communities that don’t charge for parking.

“Some have said that it’s chump change in the light of things, but when you’re struggling, chump change is change, so this is a step forward in trying to solve the problems of the town,” she said.

Council Chairman Shawn O’Neill said the town might as well capitalize on parking, and if noise becomes an issue, the matter can come back to the council.

The town is purchasing kiosk pay stations for parking in the downtown, and the old meters will be used for the new spaces on East Grand Avenue.

— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or egotthelf@journaltribune.com.