Miami Beach Gearing Up For Busy Memorial Day Weekend
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MIAMI BEACH (CBSMiami/AP) - As thousands of people are expected to hit Miami Beach for holiday weekend festivities, law enforcement and city officials are preparing to keep it safe and enjoyable.
The city has spent the year coming up with a comprehensive plan on how to handle the expected crowds and will be enhancing staffing from Thursday, May 26 through Monday, May 30th.
Again this year, there will be a small army of Goodwill Ambassador/God Squad volunteers who serve as liaisons between the city and the visitors during the busy holiday weekend. They'll be wearing identifiable T-shirts and be able to answer questions.
To handle traffic, there'll be certain restrictions in place over the weekend. A traffic loop will manage public traffic along 5 Street, Washington and Collins avenues. Alton Road will remain two-way traffic. Barricades will restrict residential areas to "Local Traffic Only" and residents may be asked to show ID.
East/west streets (100 and 200 blocks) will be restricted between Washington Avenue and Ocean Drive, 6th to 15 streets. Local residents with the properly zoned decals will be allowed to park.
Ocean Drive will be closed to traffic Friday, May 27, 7 a.m. through Tuesday, May 31, 7 a.m. Collins Avenue will be one-way northbound nightly 7 p.m. until 7 a.m. (Friday – Monday). No street parking will be allowed on Collins Avenue between 5th and 17th streets as those lanes will be used to extended pedestrian pathways.
Washington Avenue will be one-way southbound nightly 7 p.m. until 7 a.m. (Friday – Monday). Access to east/west streets between 5th and 16th streets will be restricted.
Here's more information from the Miami Beach Police Department.
All city-owned parking lots and garages will have normal operations with the exception of South Pointe Park, Nikki Beach, and 46 Street lots ($25.00/visitors & $6.00/residents).
Police will be using license plate readers on the causeways to help with stolen car cases and other law enforcement violations.
