With summer beach season winding down, the new beach pass system remains a controversial issue in Madison. At a special meeting of the Board of Selectmen (BOS) on Aug. 13, Beach & Recreation Department Director Scot Erskine provided an update on the system’s implementation and BOS members reflected on the program’s shortcomings, and where the town would look for improvement going forward.

“What we’re planning on doing,” said Erskine, “[is] evaluating what was good this summer about what we had, what tweaks can we make, and going forward, [what] should we change?”

Change could include complete overhaul of the new system, according to First Selectman Tom Banisch (R).

“The system that we got this year,” Banisch said, “we’re not going to continue with it. We’re going to do something different.”

The steps toward a change, which would be approved by the BOS, are still in the works. The town is still waiting on Passport, the company that created the system, to provide an update to the town in September, according to Erskine, and until then, the town will continue to gather facts.

“We don’t know what Passport has to offer,” he said.

The town originally was working with a different company, Complus Data, which was bought out by ParkingPass. This contributed to some of the confusion, said Banisch, as legal questions and reviews delayed the new system from a planned debut in February all the way until June.

Issues with the system were widespread, both Banisch and Erskine agreed, including technical difficulties with license plate readers that resulted in parking tickets being given to people who had already purchased a pass, and a confusing online purchasing process and limitations to how many passes could be attached to one account.

Though these problems did not greatly affect the number of beachgoers—Erskine said the town is roughly on track to match last year’s total passes sold—both Erskine and the BOS are hoping to avoid any repeat of this year’s difficulties.

Going forward, Erskine said he will be looking to ensure the system is simpler, from making account creation and purchasing easier and more intuitive to paring down purchasing options to a single fee.

“We’re going to have a lot more time to see a roll out,” he said, “because we’re starting to talk in September, and we have a few months to [be] sure what we’re doing.”

Selectman Al Goldberg (D) and Selectman Scott Murphy (D) said they had watched the beach pass controversy evolve into a larger conversation about the beaches in Madison

“I think over the course of this winter,” said Goldberg, “the Beach & Recreation Commission and the Board of Selectmen should completely reevaluate the registration system and the public safety issues regarding use of the beaches.”

Murphy said he had heard a good number of complaints from Madison residents about the lack of lifeguards and gate guards at the beaches, something he said should be more prioritized by the town going forward.

“It’s been a hot topic over the summer,” Murphy said. “The rules down at the beach have been very fluid, and there has been some chaos observed down there as a result.”

Erskine confirmed that he and others were looking into the lifeguard issue, and that recruitment of people qualified to work as lifeguards has been an obstacle not only in Madison, but around the state.

Murphy, Banisch, and Goldberg are all seeking re-election this November, and all said they have clearly heard how important issues at the beaches have been for Madison residents this past summer.

“The public wants us to invest in our beaches,” said Goldberg. “They’re kind of the crown jewels of the town.”

The town has until March 9, 2020 to decide whether to renew their current contract with Passport.