Some say business in Onset was down this summer, some say it was about average, and at least one other business owner said it was her best summer yet.

Most of those who saw a drop in business blamed the new parking situation. In July, new parking kiosks on Onset Avenue were added to a new program from last year that charged for parking on Onset Pier and at the Temple lot on Union Avenue. Residents were also forced to purchase $30 passes in order to park in “resident only” areas in the village.

Richard Butler, owner of Cape Cod Fashions in Onset, described the summer as “horrible.”

“It’s the parking,” said Butler from his shop on Onset Ave. Friday morning. “There’s no other reason for people to stay away from here. Nothing else has changed.”

Butler said that this was his second season open in Onset, and his sales dropped significantly from last year.

“We were down $3,000 just for the month of August,” he said, “never mind for the season.”

Butler said he noticed that most of his customers were worried about getting parking tickets, and one particular customer he spoke with said that she and her family used to go to Onset Beach every day, and now only go once a week because it’s too expensive to park.

“No one’s gonna pay 20 bucks to park for the day,” he said.

Stash’s, a restaurant near Onset Pier, enjoyed their second successful summer, but management did hear some grumblings about parking as well.

“It was phenomenal—it was very, very busy,” said Manager Nicole Papantoniadis, adding that the only complaints she heard had to do with the parking on Onset Pier.

“People struggled to get here,” she said. “They paid (to park), but … they came here because of the food. People did complain about the parking. That’s the only thing.”

Just up the street at the Firehouse Cafe, Manager Shannon Dixon said they saw a dip in business from last year, which was their first year open.

“The town was a lot emptier,” said Dixon, who has lived in Onset her whole life. “I’ve seen busier summers. We usually see the beaches and the streets packed. This year, you didn’t see that.”

Dixon, too, blamed the parking situation, and though she understands why it was done and supports investing in the town, she wonders why certain things such as parking restrictions and the removal of trash cans have only taken place in Onset.

“Changes should be town-wide—it stinks things get started here first,” she said, noting that weekends were pretty good for the business, but not week days.

“They kept saying, ‘it’s gonna get crazy, it’s gonna get crazy,” but it never did,” said Rachel Gauvin, who also works at the cafe.

Some other business owners and managers, though, didn’t seem to think the new parking situation was that big of a problem.

“Once everyone catches up, I think things will be OK,” said Deb Alfonso, owner of the Onset Bay Trading Post. “You have to give them time to work these things out. Pretty much anywhere you go, you have to pay to park.”

Pam Irving, owner of Cape Cod Clogs, had similar things to say.

“I think it worked out well,” she said of the pay-to-park system. “I didn’t see as much confusion in the streets—people double-parked, not knowing where they could park—in the past, people were parking wherever they could.”

At the Front Yard Gallery located on Onset Ave., owner Michelle Brodeur said things went very well for her business over the past few months.

“For me, it was a good summer,” said Brodeur of business at the gallery, which features a variety of artwork from several different artists located in an outdoor setting. “I think because it’s outdoors, people like it. Each year, it gets a little bit better.”

Peter Latham, a realtor at Conway on the Bay, said they too enjoyed a busy summer.

“We had a very brisk summer rental season as far as clients coming in and out,” said Latham.

John Salerno, owner of Marc Anthony’s, the popular Onset pizzeria, said this summer was pretty average compared to others for his business.

“The summer was alright—it was about the same,” said Salerno, though he did admit that he thought a lot of his local, regular customers stayed away during the day, which he thinks may have been due to the parking situation. “I don’t know if that’s true or not.”

Still, Salerno said he’s not necessarily against charging people to park.

“They’ve gotta let it air out and listen to peoples’ concerns. It’s the first year. With change comes a little resistance.”