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Some beachgoers question changes
Visitors to Colonial Beach throw sand on possible plans to restrict visitor behavior
Date published: 8/31/2009
By PAMELA GOULD Michael Gouvisis has lived in Colonial Beach for 38 years, but thinks the town fathers have lost their way in trying to further regulate behavior along the town's shoreline. "You promote tourism, so quit preying on tourists," he said yesterday during a break from helping friends with their vegetable stand. People who were swimming, sunbathing and fishing along the shore of the Potomac River yesterday afternoon were stunned and a bit bemused to hear some of the restrictions the Town Council is considering adding next year. Bruce and Kathy Drummond of Linden, near Front Royal, were first-time visitors to Colonial Beach. They spent the weekend at a bed-and-breakfast in town, and yesterday sat on the sparsely populated beach enjoying the sunshine and reading the day's newspaper. They chuckled as they heard that the council was considering steps such as barring people from tossing Frisbees, playing beach volleyball and using chairs and umbrellas to stake out their family's space. "I think that would be a little bit excessive," Bruce Drummond said. Plus, he envisioned another problem: "How do you enforce it?" Mary Barker hadn't been to Colonial Beach since she was a child, but yesterday came with her husband, Kraig, and their two boys, 1-year-old Ryan and 9-year-old Tanner. The Barkers live in the Montpelier section of Hanover County, so the 75-minute drive made for a nice day trip. "It seems kind of crazy," was her reaction to hearing of some of the possible bans. "Normally, you come to the beach and set up what you want to do," she said. TENSIONS IN TOWN Gouvisis said that what he believes underlies the quest for additional restrictions, including prohibiting fishing from the beach and cooking on the shore, is anti-Latino sentiment. "Some people want to keep the town in the Dark Ages," said Gouvisis, a longtime civilian employee at the Dahlgren Navy base. 'This is my personal observation. There was an abundance of Hispanics. They would get there early on a Saturday morning and stake their claim [to space]," he said. Some residents have complained about a lack of parking, blocked access for boat launching, and trash left behind. As a result of residents' complaints about out-of-towners, the Town Council closed the popular Castlewood Park indefinitely as of the first weekend in August.
Date published: 8/31/2009
Common courtesy continued...
(posted by
brksnny
, Sep. 6, 2009 2:36 am)
Colonial Beach is tantamount to DC on the 4th of July. Our town swells during these times and if there are no rules and people cannot conform to common courtesy and decency...rules have to be made to afford enjoyment for all. This is what the Safety Committee, our law enforcement, the Council, and our residents and business owners are trying to do. Make it safe, sanitary and enjoyable for all. No more and no less than any other town would want.
Common courtesy...
(posted by
brksnny
, Sep. 6, 2009 2:35 am)
Colonial Beach is simply seeking solutions to allow visitors and residents alike to enjoy Colonial Beach. Sleeping on the beach and parks and leaving refuse behind is not acceptable in Ocean City, it is not acceptable in Chesapeake Beach, it is not acceptable in Fredericksburg along the river front, or any place else I know that has residential and visitors in close proximity, We welcome our visitors, in fact we need our visitors...but the volume of a weekend or holiday in
What...no more Mad Dog 20 20
(posted by
Mandrake
, Sep. 1, 2009 4:14 pm)
or nigh-train on the beach..wow...that is draconian
Cesspool?
(posted by
upNorth
, Aug. 31, 2009 6:50 pm)
Drop the ial off Colonial, and call it Colon Beach.
playground of the Potomac?
(posted by
flowernurse
, Aug. 31, 2009 6:02 pm)
More like graveyard of the Potomac, or cesspool of the Potomac. You have to wonder how clean that water is anyway, it is downstream from from Fairview. The town doesn't want visitors? No problem, I'll stay away.
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