Residents in Port Aransas neighborhoods near beaches have complained about cars blocking driveways and roadways. The only place to park in Port Aransas is on the beach, so the city reopened most of its access roads to allow for parking there. Courtesy photo
A compromise has been reached on vehicle access to beaches in Port Aransas between the city and Nueces County, officials announced Tuesday, Aug. 11. Port Aransas reopened its beaches to vehicle traffic on Sunday, Aug. 9, in defiance of a Nueces County order banning anything on four wheels through at least Aug. 17. Port Aransas Mayor Charles Bujan said the city could no longer afford to enforce the county ban.
The beach ban on vehicles crowded Port Aransas streets with parked cars and trucks, creating problems for residents who found their driveways and roadways blocked. Port Aransas police officers were working overtime to clear cars from the street and keep them off the beach. Overtime money ran out, Bujan said.
The new plan allows limited vehicle access to the city’s beaches. Parking will be allowed within 500 feet on each side of newly opened Beach Access Road 1A, Sand Castle Drive, Avenue G, Lantana Drive, and Beach Street. Beach Access Road 1 and Cotter Avenue will continue to be blocked.
Sand berms will be put up Tuesday to block the beach road so vehicles cannot drive up and down the shoreline.
Nueces County also promised to help with enforcement to prevent more overtime on the part of the city police department.
“Public health, public safety, and public finances are all interconnected and vitally important,” Nueces County Judge Barbara Canales said in a statement issued Monday, Aug. 10, the day she met with Bujan. “Our success (in stopping the spread of COVID-19) depends on the close cooperation and coordination of city, county, state, and federal governments to create rules that deliver results, and I look forward to continue working with Port Aransas, a vital partner in our emergency management effort.”
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