RI State Officials Prepare For Busy Beach Weekend

NARRAGANSETT, RI — Reduced parking and a sweltering hot forecast are expected to make for a busy, crowded weekend at Rhode Island beaches. The Department of Environmental Management is stepping up enforcement to crack down on illegal parking and keep large crowds away from the shore.

Despite the parking restrictions put in place because of the coronavirus pandemic, state beaches saw a 79 percent increase in attendance last month, compared to the same time last year.

An unforeseen side effect of the reduced parking has led to a spike in illegal parking on the streets around beaches, causing several coastal communities to take action. This weekend, the DEM is partnering with Rhode Island State Police and local police departments to enforce parking restrictions.

"DEM stands ready to support Governor Raimondo’s goal of fighting COVID-19 by restricting parking capacity at state beaches," said Dean Hoxsie, the chief of the department’s Division of Law Enforcement. "As we’ve seen on recent weekends, crowds at the beaches have been too large and tightly packed, especially at high tide. At the same time, we recognize that fighting COVID by limiting parking strains the resources of the local beach communities that are our partners."

Environmental police officers will be posted at state beach entry booths, coordinating lot capacity with state troopers, who will be stationed on nearby roads to dissuade illegal street parking once lots are full.

The decrease in parking lot capacity means that there will only be 675 spots available out of 2,700 at Misquamicut and 611 out of 2,445 at Scarborough's North and South lots. Real-time capacity information will be available on the state parks website.

Both South Kingstown and Narragansett have both stepped up parking fines and enforcement, raising fines to $150 and changing all no parking zones to tow away zones, respectively.