Pinellas County residents will pay more to park at Sand Key Park in Clearwater, Fort De Soto and Fred Howard parks starting Oct. 1. A second round of changes hits beach parking meters Dec. 1.

Annual beach passes jump from $75 to $95 under the new rates, according to the county's parks page. Annual boat passes rise from $110 to $140. Senior passes covering both beach and boat areas go from $55 to $70, and the county will no longer sell senior beach passes separately. Disabled U.S. veteran passes remain free.

The increases are part of the county's fiscal year 2027 budget, which commissioners finalized Sept. 24. County administrators estimated the combined parking and pass changes would generate roughly $2.77 million in additional annual revenue, WUSF reported in August.

Hourly beach parking replaces flat rate Dec. 1

The bigger shift comes Dec. 1, when beach parking switches from a flat $6 daily rate to $3.50 per hour, capped at $12 per day. A two-hour beach trip will cost $7. A four-hour visit will hit the $12 daily cap, double the current flat rate. Boat-ramp parking will also cost $12 per day starting that date.

Deborah Devore, a Fort De Soto regular, told Tampa Bay 28 on Sept. 29 that the new daily cap amounts to a doubling. "That's double, and put that on top of gas and groceries and everything else that's going up now, I think that could be a hardship on some families that come here very often," Devore said.

County cites budget gap and decades-old fees

County Administrator Barry Burton said during an August budget discussion that most county parking fees had not been substantially adjusted in more than two decades. He told commissioners the county wanted to encourage people to buy annual passes.

Commissioner Vince Nowicki pushed back during that same August session, calling the increases a compounding burden. He said the parks are among the county's most valued assets and should remain accessible.

The county's general fund entered fiscal year 2027 facing a deficit of more than $30 million, driven by unfunded mandates, reduced sales tax revenues and inflation. Commissioners offset part of that gap by adjusting parking fees and lowering the countywide property tax rate for the fifth time in six years.

Only about 1,100 annual parking and boat-ramp passes are sold each year, according to the August budget discussion. Fort De Soto alone draws more than 2.7 million visitors annually.

Military, six-month and limited-income passes also rise

Military members also see increases Oct. 1. The annual beach pass with a military discount rises from $55 to $70. A new annual boat pass with a military discount is set at $105. Six-month beach passes go from $45 to $60 at full price, and limited-income beach passes rise from $37 to $55.

The Oct. 1 rates apply to all new and renewed annual passes. The Dec. 1 hourly parking rates take effect at Fort De Soto, Sand Key and Fred Howard parks.