Anna Maria Island city cracks down on parking to keep you off the beach during COVID-19
The city of Holmes Beach is adopting stricter measures to discourage people from trying to hit the sand on Anna Maria Island during the coronavirus pandemic.
The health emergency prompted the closure of all Manatee County beaches on March 20, and as of last week, all of Florida is under a stay-at-home order from Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Starting at 6 a.m. Friday, public parking within Holmes Beach city limits will be severely reduced. The city will ban all beach access parking, all parking on city streets and all right-of-way parking, according to a release issued by Holmes Beach Police Chief William L. Tokajer.
Illegally parked vehicles will be towed at the owner’s expense.
Manatee Public Beach, one of Anna Maria Island’s most centrally located and popular spots, is within the city’s limits. The public parking lot with access to that beach has been closed since the countywide order went into effect on March 20.
Anna Maria Island’s southernmost city, Bradenton Beach, never allows right-of-way parking, and the public parking lots for beach access are all closed.
The city of Anna Maria at the northern tip of the island announced in a March 20 website post that its beaches are closed to the general public but remain open to residents and their guests who practice social distancing. The city has also expanded no parking zones in some areas.
“The intent is to reduce the churn of people coming into the city over and over again,” Mayor Dan Murphy said. “Because that increases the probability of the spread of the virus.”
Murphy said that residents have continued to follow social distancing guidelines in Anna Maria, and he does not yet see a need to implement stricter parking rules that might overburden those who live in the city.
“If things happen, I can react. We’ve expanded the no parking zones to what we think is reasonable. And we’ve allowed parking where we think it’s reasonable and functional. I have a great deal of renewed respect for people during this time because they’re abiding by the law, and they all seem to be cooperating and working together.”
While Manatee County’s beach closure has greatly reduced the size of crowds on local sands, some people are still going out on the beach. Law enforcement has not been strictly enforcing the closures for those who follow social distancing rules. The closure also does not apply to residents and businesses with private beach access.
This story was originally published April 9, 2020 at 3:33 PM with the headline "Anna Maria Island city cracks down on parking to keep you off the beach during COVID-19."