Gloucester closing public beach parking lots to non-residents this weekend following complaints of excessive – MassLive.com

Gloucester is closing all beach parking lots to non-residents this weekend following numerous complaints of excessive traffic recently, Mayor Sefatia Romeo Theken, Director of Public Works Michael Hale and Public Health Director Karin Carroll said.

The lots will be closed to non-residents on Saturday, July 18, and Sunday, July 19.

The last thing we want to do is close our parking lots to visitors, but our city had an influx of traffic this past weekend, Romeo Theken said. We need to reduce the amount of traffic, which is a challenge we face every year but has certainly been compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic. More people are understandably looking to get outside after staying home for months to reduce the risk of exposure to the virus, but that has meant traffic is worse and it isnt a sustainable situation for our residents.

Carroll said the issue has been exacerbated by the limitations people have on travel, which means more people are taking day trips.

However, its critical we ensure there is plenty of space for social distancing on the beach and that residents can go about their daily lives, Carroll said.

The city said in a news release that high tide is expected to take place early in the day Saturday and Sunday, at 10:21 a.m. and 11:07 a.m. respectively, a factor which significantly reduces the area of beach available for visitors, particularly at Good Harbor and Half Moon Beaches. At Good Harbor, a portion of the beach is also sectioned off as conservation land for Piping Plovers.

This poses a significant challenge as people continue to practice social distancing to reduce the risk of exposure to COVID-19, city officials said. Beachgoers are asked to maintain a minimum of 12 feet of distance between toweling and blanket areas.

The parking lots to public beaches closed this weekend including Stage Fort Park, Good Harbor Beach and Wingaersheek Beach.

City staff will be working at the Stage Fort Park, Good Harbor Beach and Wingaersheek Beach parking lots to ensure non-residents do not park there this weekend.

Residents can enter the parking lots with a 2020 or 2019 beach sticker. If a resident is still waiting for a 2020 sticker, a license and registration with a Gloucester address can be used.

The city will announce next week if the lots will be reopened for non-residents on the weekend of July 25-26.

The public reaches are currently open to a limited number of non-residents and visitors to the area will still be permitted to park at public beach parking lots in Gloucester on weekdays, for the time being.

All beachgoers are reminded of the following guidance from City officials:

Gloucester beaches are running under the following policies: will operate as follows:

More information can be found on the Gloucester beaches Facebook page.