The fishing piers at the Boynton Inlet remain empty even as other Palm Beach County parks and recreation areas open on April 29. The fishing areas may be accessible before beaches in the county open. Jerry Lower/The Coastal Star
By Rich Pollack
While parks in Palm Beach County were set to open Wednesday, April 29, anglers will have to wait a little to fish at the Boynton Inlet.
Because Ocean Inlet Park next to the inlet is a beach park and because beaches remain closed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the county will keep the park off limits to everyone hoping to get a bite on the line.
County Parks and Recreation Director Eric Call said that while the jetty and fishing areas that line the parking lots are separate from the public beach to the south, it would be hard to keep the areas separate to visitors.
"Logistically it would be difficult to manage," Call said.
But he said discussions are ongoing over whether to open Ocean Inlet Park's fishing areas before the county gives the green light to people who want to walk along the ocean's edge.
"It's closed now but it could be open sooner than the beaches," Call said.
For now, the gates are closed, and county staff and law enforcement officers will stop most visitors from entering the park. People who keep a boat at the marina there will be allowed in after showing verification.
When fishing is again allowed at the inlet, anglers will be required to adhere to social distancing and other restrictions, Call said.
Comments
Fishing in the inlet causes covid? That is laughable. Who put these people in charge of our lives and livelihoods? They are nothing but satisficers who make things worse, not better.