Virginia Beach business owners can breathe a sigh of relief. The city’s beaches, including those at First Landing State Park, can reopen for recreational activities on Friday — just in time for the Memorial Day weekend and the traditional summer tourist season.
Other cities will have to wait, though.
Gov. Ralph Northam announced Monday afternoon he was only letting Virginia Beach reopen its beaches, in large part because the city had worked hard to develop a good safety plan. But he warned beachgoers must follow the rules.
People still can not play group sports on the beach, listen to music with speakers or drink alcohol. Groups of umbrellas are also a no-no.
Parking garages and surface lots will be capped at 50%.
“If people swarm these beaches and ignore social distancing rules or the regulations the city has put into place, I will not hesitate to reinstate Phase I restrictions or even the close the beach outright if necessary,” the governor said. “My message to Virginians is this, and it’s very simple: You must be responsible.”
Since the governor issued his first stay-at-home order March 30 amid the coronavirus pandemic, the state’s beaches have been only open for fitness activities. People can walk and run on the beach, fish and even swim, but they aren’t allowed to pull out chairs, umbrellas and blankets and spend all day sunbathing.
Such limitations have been a significant problem for the area’s tourism industry, which depends on beachgoers coming out and spending money.
“We’ve seen just absolute devastation from the beach closure,” said Russell Lyons, who owns hotels in the Virginia Beach resort area and is president of the city’s hotel association. “At the end of the day, that’s why people come to the beach, to enjoy the sunshine and be out in the fresh air.”
Northam signaled Friday he was considering lifting the beach restrictions, explaining he expected to have a comprehensive plan ready by today. He recently enlisted his secretary of natural resources to help cities toughen their beach safety, he said.
Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer sent a plan to the governor several weeks ago in anticipation of the approaching holiday that normally draws thousands to the Oceanfront.
“Memorial Day is a huge weekend,” said Bill Gambrell, who owns Tautog’s and Doc Taylor’s restaurants on 23rd Street, but hasn’t reopened them yet citing safety reasons for employees and customers. In the summer, Gambrell counts on people who stay in vacation homes or travel to Virginia Beach and make a point of dining at his restaurants.
Northam said he initially believed the city needed to do more. He praised the city Monday for going back to the drawing board and addressing his concerns.
At the governor’s request, Dyer attended Northam’s Monday news conference in Richmond and spoke briefly.
“Our city is committed to opening our beaches in a way that is safe for residents, visitors and thousands of front line staff,” Dyer said. “We will be the safe beach that is required in these most challenging times.”
Virginia Beach plans to step up its cleaning efforts in public areas and to spread out and limit parking options. Also, the city is training “ambassadors” to remind beachgoers of the social distancing rules on the sand. More than 100 should be ready by this weekend, officials have said.
Northam wants other localities to use Virginia Beach’s plan as a model, he said.
Norfolk officials are preparing a plan in the hopes their beaches can safely reopen soon.
“The Governor’s staff explained to us that today’s announcement is an opportunity to see how Virginia’s tourist oceanfront safely opens,” Norfolk City Manager Larry Filer wrote in an email. “Keep in mind, Norfolk’s beach parks are much different than Virginia Beach’s resort oceanfront area. Our beach parks are public amenities that cater to our residents.”
Hampton is prepared to follow Virginia Beach’s plan, City Manager Mary Bunting said in an email.
For now, Buckroe Beach will remain closed to sunbathers, but open for walking and jogging.
“At this point, we believe we are being told that we need to wait until Phase 2,” Bunting said via email, referring to Northam’s multitiered reopening plan. “We know our residents are very eager to go to the beach for the holiday weekend and beyond, but we have to wait until the state gives us clearance.”
“We will be ready to open as soon as we are allowed,” she added.
Several Virginia Beach city leaders gave each other virtual high fives Monday afternoon.
“I’m very glad we got it back open again,” said City Councilman Guy Tower, who represents the resort area. “There has certainly been times when we wished we were open sooner, but there have been times when we said, ‘If we could just get open by Memorial Day,’ and we have.”
Lyons, the president of the city’s hotel association, is hopeful his industry will be resuscitated now that tourists can feel more confident in booking their summer vacations. After the governor’s announcement Monday afternoon, Lyons said the phones were already ringing for reservations this weekend.
“We do expect business to be fantastic,” said Mark Yardis, vice president of operations for Shamin Hotels, which operates three hotels. “There’s a lot of cabin fever. People are ready to come out and enjoy the Oceanfront.”
Staff writer Lisa Vernon Sparks contributed to this article.
Stacy Parker, 757-222-5125, stacy.parker@pilotonline.com
