GALVESTON, Texas — What would normally be a very busy weekend down on Galveston Island is turning out to be quite calm. Pedestrians will not be allowed on the beach, though Seawall Boulevard will remain open to pedestrians and exercise activity. Organizers for both events have been contacted. The beach closure is the latest move to encourage visitors to leave Galveston.
Babe’s Beach and parking spaces along Seawall Boulevard were empty Friday, July 3, 2020, after Galveston Mayor Jim Yarbrough ordered the beaches closed for the Fourth of July weekend in an attempt to reduce crowds and the spread of the coronavirus.County officials closed Bolivar Peninsula beaches to vehicular traffic and limited the hours for foot traffic on the beaches. But I think we’re doing the right thing for the people who were gonna visit here who might not now. 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.
Please continue taking health precautions, including wearing a mask, using hand sanitizer, and maintaining six feet distance from those not in your immediate family.
Galveston public beaches are closed in response to COVID-19 Two orders are in effect as of Sunday afternoon, March 29, 2020 at 2:45 p.m. closing all public beaches in Galveston and restricting vehicle traffic on the beach west of the end of the Seawall. UPDATE 6/20/2020: Galveston beaches have been reopened. Galveston closed its beaches March 29 over fears of coronavirus spread. South of Galveston, Brazoria County has announced their 13 miles of free beach on Follett's Island, along with Quintana, Surfside and Bryan beaches, will not be open … The beaches will be closed from 5:00 a.m Friday until 12:01 a.m. Monday. Galveston's beaches will be open this weekend, but you may have trouble finding a parking spot The move comes after the beaches were closed entirely for … They reopened on May 1 following the lifting of stay-at-home mandates brought about because of the coronavirus pandemic. 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. Earlier in the week, the city cut off motor vehicle access points to the beaches in the city's East end. After being the first in the county to close bars and limit restaurants to dine out-only options, the city also ordered the closure of hotels - except in cases of first responders or people classified as essential under the orders - and ordered short term rentals to cease leasing to people for short term stays.The City of Galveston on Sunday issued an emergency order closing its beaches to the public, Mayor Jim Yarbrough confirmed. 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. Tailgating, picnicking and sitting stationery on the seawall will be prohibited. The Texas General Land Office, which governs beach access across the state, informed coastal cities like Galveston that the governor’s executive order stripped them of the ability to close beaches due to the coronavirus outbreak.Galveston Mayor Jim Yarbrough said he would also consider closing certain access points for the rest of the summer.“Beaches on Bolivar would be overcrowded and the public health authority strongly advised to shut it down because of the unsafe environment that will be created,” Apffel said.Nick Powell covers Galveston and the Bay Area for the Houston Chronicle.Under Yarbrough’s order, which takes effect at 5 a.m. Friday, the city will close all of the island’s beach access points and beach parks and restrict parking on the north and south sides of Seawall Boulevard. The following six beach access points will be closed to vehicular traffic from Friday, May 15 through May 17, including at the San Luis Pass, according to Galveston city officials. I think it’s in their best interest as well.”In a shift, the county said Thursday that it will allow foot traffic on peninsula beaches from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. daily during the holiday weekend. 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.