Recently, I had the opportunity to visit Bunces Pass and what an amazing place it is! Unfortunately, local politicians passed an ordinance that penalizes boaters. Are they reconsidering?
BACKGROUND
Bunces Pass is a natural sandbar with an interior lagoon that’s located near the mouth of Tampa Bay and on the northern side of Fort DeSoto County Park. It’s a beautiful place to spend the day by boat and its lagoon is perfect for boats, kayaks, sup’s and swimming.
RASH DECISION
Recently, one of the park employees sent a video to the county commissioners complaining about how crowded the area was with boats. Almost immediately, and without sufficiently notifying the public, the county commissioners passed an ordinance to close the lagoon and make it a vessel exclusion zone. That means no boats, kayaks, sup’s, etc.
CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT BUNCES PASS
BOATER PUSHBACK
Needless to say, boaters weren’t happy and pushed back in a big way. Within days, close to 7,000 Bay Area boaters signed a petition to change the vessel exclusion zone to a no wake zone. Their efforts made the commissioners reconsider.
I CAN’T BELIEVE THAT EVINRUDE IS NO MORE
CURRENT STATUS
I watched the county meeting on May 28th and saw, first hand, how the commissioners realized that they made a rash decision and will reconsider their ordinance. In fact, after watching the meeting I got the feeling that they will definitely change their decision and make the interior lagoon a no wake zone instead of a vessel exclusion zone. I think they will formally amend the ordinance before the end of this month. For more information about the Pinellas County meeting dates and agenda’s click HERE.
Consider Boat U.S. for your boating needs. They are a great organization that provides numerous resources to improve your life on the water AND trailering your boat. Click HERE for more information.
