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Bradenton Beach commissioners discuss beach hole ordinance

Bradenton Beach commissioners discuss beach hole ordinance

Written by Leslie Lake on . Posted in Bradenton Beach, Community News.

BRADENTON BEACH – City com­missioners discussed the current city ordinance prohibiting the digging of holes on public beaches at the June 5 meeting.

“This was brought up by (Manatee County Natural Resources Director) Charlie Hunsicker a couple of weeks ago at the coalition of Barrier Island Elected Officials meeting,” Mayor John Chappie said.

Holmes Beach has since passed a city ordinance prohibiting digging holes on beaches within the city’s limits.

“One of the things that was brought up to me is that it would be nice to have all of the three cities with a very similar if not the same ordinance,” Chappie said. “People don’t know when they’re crossing into different cities.”

The Holmes Beach ordinance pro­hibits removal of sand or shell and digging on the beach and states in part, “No person shall possess on or about the sandy Gulf beach a metal shovel of the type customarily sold in a hardware store (not a children’s toy) unless part of a (permitted) construction project.”

Chappie said the Bradenton Beach prohibition does not apply to kids digging with small beach shovels but is intended to prevent injuries to people and entrapment of sea turtles caused by larger holes.

“This is dealing with having big garden shovels out there or as somebody phrased it, as ‘an over­excited father with his kids digging a huge hole’ and then they don’t fill them back in and somebody could trip and get hurt,” he said.

Chappie said he recently received an email from a man who wrote that his wife was in the hospital after falling into a large hole at the beach.

“She hurt herself pretty badly apparently, so I think it is needed,” he said.

City Attorney Ricinda Perry said the city already has a city ordinance on the books which prohibits digging on the beaches and beach accesses.

Perry referred to Sec. 46-36 – Removal of Natural Re­sources – under city ordinance number 08-404 which has been in place since 2008.

“No person in a park shall dig, remove or displace any beach sand, whether submerged or not, or any soil, rock, stone, tree, shrub or plant, down timber or other wood or material, or make any excavation by tool, equipment, blasting, or other means or agency,” that section states.

The ordinance states, “Park means a park, golf course, playground, beach, recre­ational center or any other area in the city, owned or used by the city, and devoted to active or passive recreation.”

“If you look at it, I don’t see the need to do anything more,” Perry said. “We have something on the books that prevents this from happening.”

The 2008 Bradenton Beach ordinance doesn’t limit or specify the depth of a hole that can be dug in the beach sand. The Manatee County, Holmes Beach and Anna Maria ordinances limit the depth of a hole dug in the beach sand to 1 foot.

Penalties and enforcement

“If a code enforcement officer from the county or somebody from the city is around at the right time and place, that’s when enforcement is going to happen, but our guys are not going to be out there looking for it,” Chappie said.

Commissioner Scott Bear asked if the city could assess fines for violations.

Perry said there is nothing in Holmes Beach’s proposed ordinance that provides for fines but said she and Bradenton Beach Police Chief John Cosby have been discussing city-wide penalties and modifications as they relate to code enforcement and traffic violations.

“If you don’t write it in the ordinance then it’s subject to difficulty applying a penalty for it,” Perry said. “The penalty that’s in the code that’s applicable is any person violating the provisions of this article shall be subject to expulsion from the park.”

She said the city has concurrent jurisdiction on the beaches with Manatee County.

“If they (Manatee County) have an ordinance with a fine associated with it, then we can have that particular fine be applicable,” Perry said.

A person convicted of violation of this code could receive a fine of not more than $500, she said.

“The way I see this, the city could issue a ticket like we do with turtle lighting issues and some other irreversible harm and add this to the ticket book for removal of sand, but it can’t exceed $500 per incident.”

Cosby said city fines and possible increases will be discussed at a Wednesday, June 25 city budget meeting.

Related coverage:
Anna Maria adopting ordinance prohibiting beach holes
Beach hole concerns deepen

 

Beach hole concerns deepen

Beach hole concerns deepen

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

HOLMES BEACH – Deeply-dug beach holes, and using metal shovels to dig those holes, are becoming a major concern on Anna Maria Island’s beaches; and county officials are asking the three Island cities to adopt local ordinances to help address the problem.

Manatee County Natural Resources Department Director Charlie Hunsicker expressed his concerns about unfilled beach holes when giving a presentation to the Holmes Beach mayor and city commissioners on May 13. He plans to make similar presentations to the Anna Maria and Bradenton Beach mayors and commissioners and he hopes all three cities will adopt ordinances that mirror a county ordinance adopted within the past year or so.

Beach hole concerns deepen
Natural Resources Department Director Charlie Hunsicker addressed the Holmes Beach City Commission. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

Regarding the removal of natural resources, County Ordinance 23-121 states: “No person shall dig, damage, remove, displace or destroy any beach sand, whether submerged or not, or any soil, rock, stone, tree, shrub or plant, or down-timber or other wood or material, or excavate by tool, equipment, blasting, or other means without first obtaining a permit from the director. Exception is made for the building of sandcastles or other sand sculptures, except that the sand used for such activities must not be moved from the general vicinity of its source. The area must be returned to its original state after use.”

In regard to digging holes on a county beach, the ordinance states: “No person shall possess on or about the sandy Gulf beach a metal shovel of the type customarily sold in hardware stores – not a children’s toy – unless part of a construction project permitted under the Florida Building Code or similar law. No person shall dig a hole in the sandy Gulf beach deeper than one foot below surrounding grade unless part of a construction project permitted under the Florida Building Code or similar law.”

Manatee County owns and manages Coquina Beach and Cortez Beach in Bradenton Beach and Manatee Beach in Holmes Beach. The county also maintains and manages Bayfront Park in Anna Maria, which is city-owned and includes a beachfront area along the Tampa Bay shoreline. The county does not have the authority to regulate beaches that are not county-owned or county-managed.

As part of the efforts to protect the Island beaches, those who visit them and the wildlife that inhabits them, Hunsicker encouraged the Holmes Beach mayor and commission to consider adopting a city ordinance that would allow the city’s police officers and code compliance officers to enforce hole digging regulations similar to the county’s. Hunsicker will soon ask the Anna Maria and Bradenton Beach mayors and city commissioners to do the same.

“Everyone wants to come and build a sandcastle and get buried on the sand, but what we’re seeing now, and what we’ve seen the last several years, is a movement towards this massive work,” Hunsicker said.

His presentation includes a photo of large holes dug several feet deep on county beaches – some with adults standing in them and some with teenagers standing in them.

“Why is this happening? Because they’re out here with garden tools,” Hunsicker said. “No one’s going to be opposed to a beach pail and a plastic beach shovel and building family traditions and memories about some sandcastle. However, we’ve reached the point where some of these things are just excessive.”

Hunsicker said uncovered holes in the beach sand are even harder to see at night, which can result in people getting injured and sea turtles and other wildlife becoming fatally trapped. His presentation includes a photo of a loggerhead turtle that fell into a beach hole and died on its back, unable to escape.

Hunsicker’s presentation also references an Associated Press news story about a 2024 beach hole collapse in Fort Lauderdale that resulted in the death of a young girl. That story also references three other 2023-24 sand digging incidents that resulted in the deaths of a teenager in each instance.

Beach raker’s observations:

As the county’s primary beach rake operator, longtime Cortez resident Mark Taylor drives a large John Deere tractor up and down the county beaches towing a beach rake. Based in Holmes Beach but utilized Island-wide, the beach rake collects seaweed, algae, dead marine life and wildlife, trash and other beach debris.

Beach hole concerns deepen
Beach Rake operator Mark Taylor shared his concerns with the Holmes Beach mayor and commissioners. – Joe Hendricks
Sun

Hunsicker said Taylor once encountered a deep beach hole with a two-year-old child at the bottom of it; had he not seen the hole and then passed over it with the beach rake the consequences could have been disastrous.

At Hunsicker’s request, Taylor addressed the mayor and commission.

“Your police department has had to rope off holes that are bigger than my tractor and rig combined. These holes are dangerous. It’s a real problem,” Taylor said.

Beach hole concerns deepen
Beach rake operator Mark Taylor often encounters deep holes in the sand while navigating the Island beaches. – Manatee County | Submitted

Taylor said he has to avoid the holes when raking the beaches and he also expressed concerns about lifeguards and other first responders hitting an unseen hole while driving on the beach at an accelerated speed.

He said he gets out of his tractor a half-dozen times a day to kindly remind beachgoers to fill their holes before leaving. He also reminds them it’s currently sea turtle nesting season.

Beach hole concerns deepen
This county tractor and beach rake are stored near the Holmes Beach Skate Park. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

Taylor said the county beaches are his top priority but he often operates the tractor and beach rake Island-wide, including while traveling from one county beach to another. During turtle nesting season, Taylor works closely with Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch & Shorebird Monitoring Executive Director Kristen Mazzarella to ensure the Gulf shoreline is clear of debris and that the sand is properly sloped for the sea turtles to travel upon.

Taylor supports all three Island cities adopting beach regulations similar to the county regulations.

Commission comments:

Mayor Judy Titsworth said the city recently updated the public beach access signs placed at city street ends.

Regarding sea turtle awareness, the signs say:

  • “Lights out of for sea turtles May 1-Oct. 31;
  • “Do not approach turtles or nests;
  • “Remove beach furniture at dusk;
  • “Leave nests and signs undisturbed;
  • “Fill all holes dug in the sand.”
Beach hole concerns deepen
Signs placed at the public beach access points include sea turtle nesting season instructions. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

Police Chief Bill Tokajer supports the adoption of a city ordinance that would provide his officers and the city’s code compliance officers with the authority they need to direct beachgoers to fill their excessive holes immediately and return their metal shovels to their vehicles.

“Deeper than your knee is too far,” Tokajer said about enforcing an ordinance that would limit the depth of the holes dug in the beach sand.

City Attorney Erica Augello said she has no legal concerns about the city adopting an ordinance that mirrors the county’s language and she noted the commission could revise the county language if so desired.

The commission reached unanimous consensus in directing Augello to draft an ordinance and present it for first reading at a future commission meeting. Any changes desired by the mayor, commission or city staff can then be incorporated before the ordinance is brought back for second reading and final adoption.

Beach hole

Holes on beach dangerous to people, turtles

Written by Cindy Lane on . Posted in Featured, Outdoors, Sea turtles.

Holes on the beach are no longer accidents waiting to happen.

Two children recently got trapped in a hole that they dug on the beach, Manatee County beach raker Mark Taylor said. A man jumped in, pushed them out of the hole, and got stuck himself before finally making it out.

After trying to fill in the hole, shoveling by hand, Taylor climbed up on the tractor and began using it to fill in the hole.

The tractor got stuck.

Beach hole
Beginning May 1, chairs and other objects must be removed from the beach at night, and holes, which can trap turtles, must be filled in. – Mark Taylor | Submitted

One hole he filled in was so big – deeper than the tractor is tall – that it took another tractor and a four-wheel-drive pickup truck to get the tractor out of the hole. When the holes are as deep as the tractor is tall, the tractor could flip over, he said.

And it’s not only the big ones that are dangerous.

“What would happen if you stepped into a small four-foot-deep hole?” he asked. “You can do as much damage with a small, deep hole as a large one.”

About a third of the people he asks to fill in the holes before they leave the beach actually do, Taylor said. When he comes back the next day in the tractor, he finds that people have sometimes placed chairs around their hole to protect it so they can keep digging in it the next day.

By law, that must stop on May 1, the beginning of the six-month sea turtle nesting and hatching season on the Island.

Chairs and other objects must be removed from the beach at night, and holes, which can trap turtles, must be filled in.

But Suzi Fox, director of Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring, is also worried about people.

Beach hole
Holes and tunnels on the beach are safety hazards for people and wildlife.

Without ordinances in all three Island cities, police can do nothing, even when they spot a dangerous hole in the sand, she said.

Anna Maria is working on an ordinance, Fox said, suggesting that Holmes Beach and Bradenton Beach use the same ordinance to save money on attorney fees and make enforcement standardized Island-wide.

“I think the quicker, the better,” Fox said, since turtle season is only a few days away. “The less obstacles turtles have to work around, the more energy they will save for their nesting duties.”

Other ordinances around the state limit shovels to 14 inches, including the handle, she said.

“It’s surprising how much damage you can do with toy shovels,” Taylor said, citing a Panama City ordinance that prohibits metal shovels and imposes a $25 fine for holes bigger than a washtub.

“It used to be young guys on spring break, but this year it’s been more young families with their kids” digging the holes, he said.

This week, Taylor is using the beach rake tractor to smooth out the shoreline to make it easier for nesting turtles to access the beach.

No turtles had nested as of Monday, April 23, Fox said, adding that Turtle Watch volunteers have been scouring the beaches at dawn each morning since April 1.

They have found two snowy plover nests, a threatened species in Florida, and black skimmers – another state threatened species – are starting to nest in Holmes Beach, she said.

Loggerhead turtles, the most common sea turtles on the Island, already are coming ashore to nest on Florida’s east coast, she said, adding that it won’t be long for the west coast girls to arrive here.

Last year’s sea turtle season on the Island was a record, with 488 nests and 25,379 hatchlings that made it to the Gulf of Mexico.