County-owned beaches and Fort Myers Beach Pier to close at 6 p.m. Thursday

County-owned beaches and the county-owned Fort Myers Beach Pier will close until further notice effective at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 19, in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19. This includes beach parking lots, restrooms and county-owned beach access points.

The county sites include:

Beach Parks

Bonita Beach Park

Bowditch Point Park

Bowman’s Beach Park

Causeway Islands

Crescent Beach Family Park

Little Hickory Island Beach Park

Lynn Hall Memorial Beach Park

Matanzas Pass Preserve

San Carlos/Bunche Beach Preserve

Turner Beach Park

​Beach Accesses

Alison Hagerup Beach Park

Andy Rosse Lane paddlecraft launch

Boca Grande Beach Accesses

Bonita Beach Accesses

Dog Beach Park

​Estero Islands Beach Access

​Matanzas Bridge Fishing Pier

County Manager Roger Desjarlais announced the closure using Centers For Disease Control guidance and at a time when many college-age students are on spring break or are in the area while taking online classes. 

“While young people may not be as vulnerable to the symptoms of COVID-19 as older adults, they can be asymptomatic and spread the virus to others, including older adults and their own family members,” he said. 

The county will coordinate enforcement with the appropriate enforcement agencies.

The county is also suspending LeeTran beach trolley and tram service effective 6 p.m. Thursday.

For more information, visit www.leegov.com/covid-19 or for the locations of county-owned beaches, visit https://www.leegov.com/parks/beaches.