SLO County beaches ‘busy but manageable’ during Fourth of July weekend, officials say

Despite concerns that visitors would flock to San Luis Obispo County beaches for the Fourth of July, the scene at Pismo Beach and other coastal spots on Saturday was surprisingly mellow.

According to law enforcement officials, local beaches were fairly crowded on Independence Day, but coastal communities didn’t see the huge throngs that usually pack San Luis Obispo County on America’s biggest holiday.

Those who did come ⁠to the coast — at least about half in Pismo Beach — were wearing masks and facial coverings while walking about town.

“Yes, I think they got it.” Pismo Beach Police Department Chief Jake Miller said, “It was really nice to see.”

That came as a contrast to Memorial Day weekend, when only a handful of visitors donned face coverings.

Coastal counties south and north of San Luis Obispo County closed beaches to the public or restricted access to coastal areas during the Fourth of July holiday weekend to slow the spread of coronavirus.

In Santa Barbara County, members of the public were barred from “sitting, laying, standing, sunbathing and sight-seeing, picnicking, and all other non-exercise, passive, or sedentary activities” from Friday through Saturday, according to the official order from the county Public Health Department. Water sports and other physical activities were allowed at area beaches during that time.

“People are allowed to walk on the beach, jog, swim or surf,” Miller explained. “They are not supposed to sit on a towel and congregate in groups.”

But San Luis Obispo County opted to keep beaches open despite concerns about a recent surge in COVID-19 cases.

In Avila Beach, people practiced social distancing Saturday on the sand and in the surf for the most part, except in some groups crowded around the pier.

On Saturday, Pismo Beach looked “a lot like a regular weekend that we’ve experienced in the last six to eight weeks of people coming out,” Miller said. “In my 27 years of Fourth of Julys, I’ve never seen this. The beach was almost totally empty at 6:30 p.m. tonight. That’s what usually happens on regular weekends.”

“We had double the resources today, and I was actually able to send some personnel home,” Miller said. “I was grateful to have the luxury to have officers go into neighborhoods and handle firework prevention.”

“We also had enough officers to check that bars are complying with the SLO County bar closure,” he said. “We could also check that businesses were adhering to the proper social distancing, posting signage to wear a mask, and that employees were in compliance.”

In May, the Pismo Beach City Council passed an urgency ordinance requiring businesses to post signage reminding people to wear face coverings. The ordinance also requires employees to wear masks when dealing with members of the public.

SLO County protests, fireworks calls

On Friday, county public health officer Dr. Penny Borenstein ordered bars, pubs and breweries in San Luis Obispo County to close for the Fourth of July weekend due to coronavirus concerns.

The countywide closure, which began 4 p.m. Friday, was slated to be lifted at 5 a.m. Monday.

The move came after San Luis Obispo officials on July 1 announced all bars, breweries and wine-tasting venues in the city must close during the Fourth of July weekend.

Firework extravaganzas that traditionally draw large crowds to Cayucos, Pismo Beach and Cambria were canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, along with Santa Maria’s annual fireworks show.

Black Lives Matter protests were held in the cities of San Luis Obispo and Pismo Beach late Saturday afternoon. “The protesters marched peacefully by the Pismo Pier, and we had no problems with them at all.” Miller said.

Overall, the holiday was remarkably without incident, local law enforcement officials said.

A San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office watch commander said Sunday morning that the department was “busy” Saturday night but there were no significant incidents to report.

In Pismo Beach, Miller said officers didn’t see any significant or unusual activities related to the holiday, other than some fireworks calls after dark,

“It was a normal Saturday night,” he said Sunday morning. “Busy, but manageable.”

In Grover Beach, police officers responded to 73 illegal fireworks calls and issued citations at addresses in 12 blocks, according to a tweet Sunday from the Grover Beach Police Department.