Half Moon Bay and Pacifica beaches, parking lots will close 4th of July weekend
File photo of Pillar Point Harbor in Half Moon Bay. Photo: Duncan Sinfield/KTVU.
HALF MOON BAY, Calif. - City officials in Half Moon Bay and Pacifica announced late Wednesday that all of its beaches and beach parking lots will be closed for the 4th of July holiday weekend. The decision came as Governor Gavin Newsom tightened coronavirus restrictions as COVID-19 cases are once again surging.
Half Moon Bay officials said along with the beaches and parking lots, a portion of the Coastal Trail between Seymour Bridge and Kelly Avenue, will also close.
The closures begin at sunrise on Friday, July 3. The facilities will reopen at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, July 6, officials said. Sheriff's deputies will be stationed at the closed beaches and coastal trail to enforce the order as well as to monitor fireworks activity.
Half Moon Bay, in San Mateo County, is not one of the 19 counties on the state health department's "County Data Monitoring" list, which the governor revealed earlier on Wednesday. Newsom did not close State beaches, but he did close their parking lots in Southern California and the Bay Area.
The Peninsula coastal community is taking Newsom's latest orders a step further to avoid large crowds from gathering during a pandemic like they did during the Memorial Day holiday.
“Half Moon Bay is following the lead of Governor Newsom in closing Poplar Beach and its parking lot. If the potential crowds here are similar to previous holiday crowds we’ve seen, this kind of action is necessary for the protection of public health and safety,” said Half Moon Bay Mayor Adam Eisen.
Half Moon Bay officials said they do not want to be added to the state's county monitoring list, nor do they want to face further coronavirus-related closures.
Pacifica is also closing its beaches and parking lots from sunrise Friday to sunrise Monday, July 6. The following locations are affected:
- Pacifica State Beach (Linda Mar Beach) and north and south parking lots,
- Crespi parking lot in front of the Pacifica Community Center,
- Rockaway Beach and north and south parking lots,
- Sharp Park Beach
- Esplanade Beach and Fisherman’s Lot in the 800 block of Palmetto Avenue
The Coastal Trail, Mori Point hiking trails, Beach Boulevard Promenade, and Pacifica Pier will remain open for visitors as long as they wear a mask/face covering and practice six-feet of physical distance.