Written by Amber Skinner | 30 July 2010

While all present at the July 14 special Selectman's Meeting appeared to agree on the importance of keeping Cedar Beach open to the public, a few residents who live off Robinhood Road expressed frustration with visitors ignoring parking signs and pedestrian-only areas and blocking traffic, and they offered plenty of stories of disrespectful behavior, including late-night parties, using the nearby woods and lawns as toilets, littering, and setting off fireworks.
Most of the problems are created by people with "out-of-state plates, who account for at least half of the parked cars" on Robinhood Road, one Cedar Beach Road resident said. Locals are more respectful, she added.
Betsy Yatkins of Bailey Island suggested Harpswell residents could get decals for parking.
But "the impact on the economy (of potentially cutting off visitors from Cedar Beach) must be considered," Selectman Elinor Multer said. "Our local economy relies on visitors to a considerable extent."
Everyone seemed to believe more police presence and ticketing would help.
The parking issue is significant, with many examples of residents blocked from getting to their homes and the fear that emergency vehicles might be unable to get where they need to go.
"There are existing parking problems," Multer conceded. "Our responsibility to take care of those isn't dependent on anything else."
One elderly man, a lifelong resident of Robinhood Road, admitted to having had problems in the past with drivers using his driveway to turn around and knocking down his fence. But he offered: "I'll pick up the trash others leave behind...just don't close the beach."