Police forces will be doubled in Clearwater Beach to watch for underage drinking and to help keep traffic moving.
By CHRIS TISCH
Published March 14, 2004
[Times photo: Kathleen Flynn]
Clearwater Beach won't stay as quiet as it was Friday for long. Spring break families and students will swarm through mid April.
CLEARWATER - The roads are packed, the hotel rooms are filled and the beaches are covered.
Spring break has arrived on Clearwater Beach.
More than a half-million people are expected to visit Pinellas County this month, many of them headed for Clearwater's world-famous sand. And that will bring plenty of traffic and parking headaches for local residents and police.
"The numbers are up over last year," said Mike Meidel, president of the Clearwater Regional Chamber of Commerce. "And I don't see any reason for that not to continue."
Meidel said welcome center visits were up about 10 percent in the past two months compared to the same period last year. Visitors who show up without hotel reservations also are finding it difficult to book an available room, he said.
"It's definitely high occupancy rates this year," he said.
Meidel said because of the favorable exchange rate, more Europeans than usual are visiting Clearwater. The chamber is seeing some tourists from Italy and Spain, which is rare.
Though tourism numbers haven't reached the levels of before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, they're getting close.
"We're definitely narrowing in," Meidel said. "I think it's pent-up demand and the lousy winter they've had up North."
Local residents who want to join the spring break frenzy should remember the rules about getting to the beach and parking.
Perhaps the best rule to follow is to remain patient. With construction continuing on the bridge to the beach, traffic will be crawling.
The police presence on the beach will double for spring break, which will run until mid April. Officers also are already stationed at downtown intersections making sure motorists drive courteously. Last weekend, more than 50,000 cars passed through the Clearwater Beach traffic circle, and that was before the biggest surge of spring breakers arrived, said Lt. Mike Waters, commander of the police department's beach district.
Waters will have officers placed at many beach intersections, including the traffic circle, where officers can stop one section of the circle and allow another to empty to keep traffic fluid.
"Our job is to keep traffic flowing on the beach," Waters said.
Clearwater doesn't typically attract the rowdy spring breakers of other destinations, but officers still will be looking for troublemakers. State undercover agents will be checking businesses to ensure they don't sell alcohol to minors, while officers from several agencies will be patrolling the waters.
"The waterways will be crawling with cops of every color," said police spokesman Wayne Shelor.
Perhaps the busiest days will be when local high schools let out for spring break. Three local counties, including Pinellas, will be out March 22-26, making those days, plus the weekends, very busy.
Parking, as usual, will be at a premium on the beach. There are about 1,650 parking spots on the beach and another 800 at Sand Key Park. They fill up fast, so city officials urge people to get to the beach early.
"If you're not sure if it's a legal space, don't park there," said Tracey Bruch, the city's parking manager.
