MANATEE COUNTY – Local boaters took to the water over the weekend after Manatee County’s public boat ramps reopened on Monday, April 13.
The public boat ramps were closed on March 26 by Manatee County Public Safety Director Jake Saur, but the Coquina South boat ramp in Bradenton Beach and the Riverside boat ramp in Palmetto remained opened to commercial fishermen. The ramp closures were part of the county’s response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
On Friday, April 10, Manatee County commissioners voted 4-3 to reopen the boat ramps the following Monday. Commissioners Vanessa Baugh, Reggie Bellamy, Misty Servia and Priscilla Trace supported reopening the boat ramps. Commissioners Betsy Benac, Steve Jonsson and Carol Whitmore opposed it.
On Sunday, several boaters gathered offshore of Jewfish Key. With a few exceptions, most of the boaters anchored there adhered to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) COVID-19 social distancing guidelines. The FWC guidelines call for no more than 10 people per vessel and that vessels maintain a 50-foot distance from other vessels.
Boat traffic in and around Longboat Pass was also moderately heavy and the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office Marine Unit was on scene patrolling those waters.
A visit to Anna Maria Island’s boat ramps Sunday afternoon revealed full parking lots, robust activity and no noticeable social distancing concerns.
Members of the Manatee County Beach Patrol monitored the Coquina North and Coquina South boat ramp parking lots in Bradenton Beach and parking was limited to boat ramp users only.
Fred Garvin and his friend, Jesse, were among those who put in at the Coquina South boat ramp on Sunday.
“I think it’s a good sign of things getting back to normal, but I think it’s important not to go too quick with it. Go a little bit at a time,” Garvin said regarding the gradual loosening of COVID-19 restrictions.
Bradenton Beach Police Officer Devon Straight patrolled the boat ramp parking lots and the adjacent Gulf Drive rights of way where public parking is not allowed.
“Since they’ve reopened the boat ramps, it’s almost like a normal Sunday out here. Both boat ramps have been overflowing and we’re getting calls about parking complaints,” Straight said Sunday afternoon.
“Our biggest concern is at the base of the Longboat Pass Bridge. That is a state right of way and parking there is reserved for the bridgetender only. A lot of people think that since they can’t park at Coquina Beach, or park at the boat ramps to go to the beach, they’re parking on the right of ways. We are citing them $50 parking tickets if we catch them doing that. We try to give a warning first, but if we can’t find you, you’re going to get a ticket,” Straight said.
“As it has always been, as long as you can find legal public parking you can access the beaches,” Straight added.
The Kingfish boat ramp in Holmes Beach was also busy on Sunday. By late afternoon, there were still several vehicles and boat trailers parked along the Manatee Avenue right of way across the street. Boat ramp users included boaters, personal watercraft owners and some kayakers who put in along the shoreline west of the ramps.
