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Tag: Anna Maria Island parking

AMI on the Fourth of July: Here’s your checklist

Written by Jason Schaffer on . Posted in Featured.

ANNA MARIA ISLAND – After a record-breaking spring season and Memorial Day weekend, all signs point to the busiest July 4 holiday ever, based on indications from Island innkeepers and renters, flights booked into SRQ and trends studied by the Manatee County Tourist Development Council.

Whether you’re a longtime Island resident or just here for a week, there’s plenty you need to know in order to have a safe and enjoyable Independence Day.

Parking

Parking is a constant subject of local debate in the three cities that make up Anna Maria Island and it is one of the most discussed topics by people planning a visit.

Bradenton Beach has more parking than the other two cities. Parking is available at both county beaches (Coquina Beach and Cortez Beach) where free trolleys turn around every 20 minutes from 6 a.m. until 10:30 p.m., seven days a week, transporting visitors to locations anywhere on Anna Maria Island.

The main parking lot is located off First Street North just east of Circle K. The lot is also accessible off Bridge Street. Additional parking lots are located in the 400 block of Highland Avenue (Police Department) and south of the Public Works facility (under the cell tower). All parking areas are free and all lots are closed at midnight.

Here are some parking prohibitions in the three cities:

Anna Maria          
  • In areas with signs prohibiting parking
  • On a sidewalk
  • On a street (all tires must be off the pavement)
  • Facing the wrong direction
  • Angle parking
  • Within 30 feet of a stop sign
  • Within 20 feet of an intersection
  • Double parking
  • Blocking a driveway
  • Between 10 p.m. – 6 a.m.
  • In a handicapped zone or space without a permit
Bradenton Beach
  • On a street
  • In the grass or on the sand at Coquina Beach
  • Anywhere that emergency vehicles will be blocked; blocking vehicles will be towed
  • In a handicapped zone or space without a permit ($300 fine)
  • Anywhere that is not a designated parking spot.
Holmes Beach
  • In areas with signs that prohibit parking
  • On a sidewalk
  • On a crosswalk or within 20 feet of a crosswalk
  • On a bicycle path
  • Within 30 feet of a stop sign
  • Within 30 feet of an intersection
  • Within 15 feet of a fire hydrant
  • Blocking a public or private driveway
  • In a handicapped zone or parking space without the proper license plate or hang-tag issued by a state and affixed to or in the car
  • Between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. at Manatee Beach
  • Facing the wrong direction
  • Double parking, either side by side or tandem
  • On private property without the permission of the owner of the property

Traffic

Anna Maria Island is small – 7 miles long – and the southern portion of the Island is very narrow. Because of the geography, there are few back roads and very few shortcuts.

It likely will be shoulder-to-shoulder on AMI beaches this holiday weekend, so plan on arriving early. – Mike Field | Sun

According to Holmes Beach Police Chief William Tokajer, more than 31,000 cars entered his city on Memorial Day, and there’s no reason to expect less for the July 4 holiday. While Anna Maria and Bradenton Beach don’t track vehicles, numbers are expected to be similar. The best policy for dealing with traffic headaches is to just accept that there is not much that can be done about it, relax and enjoy the scenery. A great deal of the traffic jams on AMI come with views much more pleasant than the daily grind in most American cities.

If you can leave the car at home, there is some help being offered by Manatee County. In an effort to help drivers avoid heavy beach crowds over the Fourth of July weekend, Manatee County Area Transit will offer free rides onto and off of Anna Maria Island via Manatee Avenue next week.

The special fare-free zone allows passengers to board the Beach ConneXion Shuttle to Manatee Beach from July 2-4 at any MCAT stop between 75th Street West and Anna Maria Island.

The AMI Trolley and the Beach ConneXion Shuttle will operate on Independence Day, but regular fixed-route and Handy Bus services are suspended on July 4. Regular fixed route and Handy Bus services are available on Saturday, July 3 and will resume Monday, July 5.

Wildlife

The Island is home to a large variety of wildlife, and while it is a great place to live and visit, it is also their home and needs to be respected. It’s currently nesting season for sea turtles and many shorebird species, including least terns, a threatened species that hasn’t had a successful nesting colony in 15 years on the Island. 

Here are a few tips to enjoy your trip and not disturb native wildlife:

  • Manatees may approach you, but enjoy them while giving them space. Take a picture, but don’t touch them. They won’t harm us, but we can easily harm them.
  • Birds are everywhere on AMI, from osprey to pelicans to seagulls and many more. They will often come very close to humans, but they also need to be enjoyed from a distance. Don’t feed any birds, and please teach children that chasing them is not ok. Chasing birds could cause them to abandon their nests. Also, cleaning up after your beach visit keeps trash from being entangled in a wing or a leg. 
  • Sea turtles are currently nesting. Please fill any holes you or your children may dig on the beach. A baby sea turtle could hatch at night and fall into the hole, and that’s a meal for a predator. Also avoid flashlights or cellphone lights on the beach at night. It can confuse hatchlings and they will not make it to the ocean. 
  • While the Gulf coast is known to be relatively safe for swimming, be aware that it’s still wild, and the wildlife needs to be respected. Watch for any warnings from beach patrol and lifeguards regarding dangerous marine life. This could be sharks, jellyfish or other marine life of concern. When walking in the ocean, practice the “stingray shuffle.” Stingrays don’t want to hurt you, and if one swims by there is no cause for serious concern. However, they like to bury themselves in the sand at times, and if you step on one, they may sting you out of fear they are being attacked. The “stingray shuffle” means sliding your feet through the sand as you walk in the water rather than using a traditional step. The stingray will know you’re coming and will swim away. 

Weather protection

Summer is the rainy season on the Island. This doesn’t mean it rains all the time, but severe afternoon storms are very common this time of year, and the weather should be taken seriously. In addition to protecting your body, using some common sense will protect your property as well.

  • When a storm comes, take shelter and stay out of the water. It’s not uncommon for a summer storm to produce more than 50 lightning strikes in a radius of just a few miles. If you can hear thunder, you are in range to be struck by lightning. High winds from afternoon storms can also produce dangerous riptides which can cause drowning.
  • The sun is very strong in the summer, and even if it’s cloudy, you can get a serious burn that can make your beach time much less pleasant for days. Use sunblock, and reapply after going in the water regardless of how “waterproof” your sunscreen claims to be.
  • Anna Maria Island has a low crime rate, and while violent crimes are rare, anytime tens of thousands of people gather in a small area, crimes of opportunity will happen. Try not to bring valuables to the beach, and if you must, don’t wander away from them. Jewelry, electronics and beach supplies are easy targets for beach thieves. 

The beach

Dogs, alcohol, grills, glass bottles and other items are not permitted on Island beaches. If you choose to risk it, be aware that you will be fined if caught by beach patrol. Most public beach access entrances have signs that let you know what is allowed and what is prohibited at that particular beach.

Fireworks

See Fireworks at amisun.com.

Holmes Beach logo OLD

Commissioners consider parking concession for residents

Written by SUN contributor on . Posted in Community News, Holmes Beach.

HOLMES BEACH – While city leaders await the delivery and installation of new posts and signs for street side, right of way and beach access parking, all of those options remain closed to beachgoers, even those who reside in the city.

During a May 26 commission meeting, Chief Bill Tokajer said that while the parking signs and the posts for them are expected to arrive over the next several days, it could take two weeks or more to have them all installed. Once the installation is complete, he said parking will be reopened at beach accesses but remain closed along city streets and in the rights of way. This opens up about 479 spaces, more than are needed for beach renourishment funding but keeps about 2,000 spaces permanently closed.

Over the Memorial Day holiday weekend, Tokajer said his officers issued parking tickets but did not tow any illegally parked vehicles.

Though he said that he’s received 98% support from residents on the new parking plan, there’s still a small percent, particularly those that live on the east side of Holmes Beach who have to drive to the beach, that are unhappy with the decision. In an effort to assist those residents with obtaining a beach parking space more easily, Tokajer said he’s looking at designating golf cart parking spaces at some beach accesses. The reasoning for designated golf cart spaces is that residents and visitors to the Island will be the only people arriving at the beach in golf carts, not people from town or other areas.

Though Tokajer said not all beach access points are large enough to accommodate handicapped parking spaces, four will be designated at the 53rd Street access near the Martinique condominiums. He added that a volunteer from the community has offered to install a handicap ramp to assist with beach access at the location.

Another group having difficulty with the new beach parking arrangements are area churches.

While Tokajer said beach parking has been taking place at CrossPointe Fellowship, it was not under authorization from the church’s leaders and Holmes Beach police can’t interfere because the parking lot is located in the city of Anna Maria.

In contrast, Father Matthew Grunfeld spoke during public comment at the meeting, petitioning for the Episcopal Church of the Annunciation to be able to allow parking at the church’s lot for a donation.

With donations down due to the church’s closure for COVID-19 precautions and a dwindling resident population on the Island, Grunfeld said that allowing beach parking, overseen by volunteers from the church, gives his congregation a new way to minister to the public and also collect a freewill offering if drivers are so inclined to donate to the church.

Though the church did contact the city prior to beginning the parking project and received the police chief’s blessing, Tokajer said a later consultation with the city planner’s office revealed a zoning issue with allowing beach parking at the church parking lot or any private lot in the city.

Mayor Judy Titsworth said she appreciated what the church is trying to do, but that the church or any other owner of a private parking lot would have to submit to the city planner’s office for a site plan review. If the site plan review meets the criteria, it would go before the city commission for review and a vote. Currently, allowing parking and accepting money for it is a nonconforming use, Titsworth said.

Commissioner Terry Schaefer and resident Jayne Christenson both spoke in favor of the church being allowed to host beach parking, saying that the volunteers at the Church of the Annunciation were running a very orderly, friendly operation.

Though Titsworth said a site plan review could take time if there isn’t something immediate that the planner’s office staff can suggest, Schaefer said he’d like to keep searching for a way to help the church members continue with their parking outreach project.

Titsworth said no applications for a site plan review had been received as of May 26.

Related coverage

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Parking remains closed in Holmes Beach

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Commission seeks consistent parking restrictions

Commission seeks consistent parking restrictions

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Bradenton Beach, Community News.

BRADENTON BEACH – Parking with any tires on the pavement or parking within 15 feet of a stop sign will soon subject drivers to a $50 parking ticket.

The mayor and city commissioners remain divided as to whether parking with a portion of your vehicle hanging over the pavement will also be a finable offense.

These changes to the city’s parking ordinance were discussed at the Tuesday, Sept. 10 commission work meeting. At the commission’s request, City Attorney Ricinda Perry is now drafting ordinance language that incorporates the commission’s requested changes.

Mayor John Chappie and commissioners Ralph Cole, Marilyn Maro and Jake Spooner agree that vehicles should not park with any tires on the road or park within 15 feet of a stop sign. The city’s parking ordinance currently prohibits parking within 10 feet of a stop sign.

Chappie and Maro believe tickets should be issued for parking with a portion of the vehicle hanging over the pavement. Cole and Spooner do not support that position.

Commissioner Randy White will likely cast the tie-breaking vote on vehicle overhang when the ordinance is presented for adoption at two future public hearings. White did not attend the recent work meeting.

Chappie initiated the work meeting discussion and voiced concerns that included too many vehicles being parked at vacation rental homes on the south side of town.

Chappie said his primary concern with vehicles overhanging the pavement pertains primarily to vehicles parked close to an intersection, which impedes the visibility of approaching drivers.

Inconsistent rules

Police Chief Sam Speciale said his officers would enforce whatever changes the commission adopts, but they have to be written in a manner that will hold up if challenged in court.

Speciale said the city’s current parking regulations are inconsistent because they have long differed for the north and south sides of the city due to varying space limitations.

Speciale said there generally isn’t enough space in the rights of way on the south side of the city to park without having at least two tires on the road, but you can be ticketed for doing the same on the north side of town.

Speciale questioned the fairness and consistency of ticketing someone who parks with their tires on the pavement on the north side of the city and does not get ticketed for doing the same on the south side.

The four attending commission members agreed that they want consistency and they seek an ordinance that prohibits parking with tires on the pavement citywide.

Other changes

Other proposed changes include prohibiting parking in a manner that blocks an alley, similar to the existing prohibition on blocking a driveway.

Building Official Steve Gilbert suggested eliminating the wordy ordinance language that pertains to parking at city street ends and allowing street end parking unless a no parking sign prohibits it.

Related coverage

Paid parking may be coming to county boat ramps

Coquina Beach parking limited

Anna Maria’s street-side parking switches sides