Galveston beaches are slated to reopen Monday but only under certain restrictions. But I think we’re doing the right thing for the people who were gonna visit here who might not now. The Galveston City Council opened beaches for a small window in the morning starting April 27, but later that week, Abbott ordered all state beaches fully opened beginning May 1. Yarbrough said he had hoped to keep the beaches open so locals with cabin fever during the stay-at-home order would be able to get out. The county adjusted the scheduled closures to accommodate those who have already booked vacation rentals on Bolivar Peninsula for the weekend.The mayor said he was initially unsure whether he had the power to close beaches, but was influenced to do so in part by an order issued Tuesday by Nueces County — which includes Corpus Christi, a coastal tourism hot spot — to prohibit vehicular access to beaches over the holiday weekend.
Galveston closed its beaches March 29 over fears of coronavirus spread.
The closure, which started just before 3 p.m. will last for 7 days, City Manager Brian Maxwell said.We look forward to reopening the special events permitting process when it is safe to do so.
"We had tried to keep them open for local residents to have a place to venture out and social distance themselves during this very trying time for everyone."Unfortunately, our beaches were becoming overcrowded with people violating all state, county, and local orders and we were forced to close access to all beaches," he continued. This was news to Yarbrough until he was informed that Nueces County’s beach closure went into effect on Tuesday.Yarbrough, who is stepping down as mayor on July 15 in part due to health concerns from the coronavirus outbreak, added that while his order restricts beach access just for the July 4th weekend, he planned to issue a separate order next week that would limit high-traffic access points on the island, such as at San Luis Pass and Diamond Beach, through Sept. 30, when the city’s disaster declaration expires.“We got in touch with GLO and they’re supportive of whatever decisions we make, which has always been a concern, certainly over the last month,” Yarbrough said.Galveston’s beach closure comes after two months of large crowds swarming the island following Gov.
Galveston Island is a historic beach town located on the Gulf of Mexico just 50 miles from Houston. The beach closure will end at 12:01 a.m. Monday.At the time of Abbott’s executive order, coronavirus infections in Galveston County had begun to trend downward.
Galveston, TX – May 14, 2020 – Six beach access points will be closed to vehicular traffic beginning Friday, May 15 through Sunday, May 17, including at the San Luis Pass.