A South Beach park has reopened - again - a week after it was closed because city officials said a majority of visitors didn't comply with social distancing guidelines.
South Pointe Park reopened Monday after city officials from Miami Beach confirmed the move late last week. The park's hours are 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and it is closed on weekends.
Early Monday, park attendants passed out optional masks and kept benches sanitized while pointing visitors down one-way paths.
Visitors will not need to wear masks at the park as long as they maintain social distancing.
CORONAVIRUS LATEST
“Nice to be there and we’re trying to be safe as everybody should because you never know," said Tariq Karim, who arrived at 7 a.m. when the gates opened. "But, we’re glad it’s open.”
On May 1, the city reopened parks and marinas between certain hours and under specific health guidelines. That weekend, officials say over 7,300 verbal warnings were given to people who did not wear their face masks at parks, a majority of which occurred at South Pointe.
On top of the verbal warnings, city officials say over 1,300 people were asked to leave parks after closing, while nearly 500 social distancing warnings were given.
“It’s kind of nice to have this open to space everybody out and hopefully everybody respects the rules and stays far apart unlike the last weekend," said Spencer Seely, who lives near the park.
The opening comes one day after protesters took to Lummus Park asking officials to open all beaches and parks that have been closed for the most part since mid-March.
"People are tired of sitting in their houses. People want to get back out to the parks, to the beach," siad Susan Chapman, who lives nearby and attended the rally. "It’s our right as Americans to be able to go wherever we want. We don’t want to be stuck in our houses.”
