Although the City has been hesitant to take this action, effective Thursday (tomorrow) morning, the beach will be closed to both pedestrians and vehicles.
As has been observed by the Police Department, City staff and residents over the past few weeks, the majority of people visiting the beach are there for a non-essential reason, violating the Governor's Executive Stay at Home Order. This includes numerous group meetings, folks hanging out eating and drinking, people working on laptops, people watching videos on various devices, several impromptu car shows, people playing sports and board games, and a wide variety of other non-essential activities. The playground also continues to be used by visitors despite being signed as prohibited.
Secondly, an unusually high number of the visitors are also violating local ordinance and the City's rules while at the beach, such as parking without a city sticker or permit, walking their dogs on the beach, walking on the north and south beach drives, and riding bicycles and/or skateboarding on the boardwalk.
And lastly, many visitors, whether there for a essential or non-essential reason, are continuing to violate the Governor's mandate to continue social distancing. On some days, there are so many visitors that social distancing is becoming a practical impossibility in certain areas of the beach.
The Police Department will continue to patrol the beach, boat ramp, and upper parking lot to ensure compliance with this closure order, the Governor's Executive Order, and existing local ordinances.
Please note that Forest Park (at the top of the beach) and the Ring Road will remain open, as will other parks and trails, for walking, running and bike riding, as long as the community continues to practice physical distancing.
