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Tampa Bay’s Hometown Morning Krewe

Tampa Bay’s Hometown Morning Krewe

Tampa Bay’s Hometown Morning Krewe

Gandy Beach Project Will Affect July 4th Plans

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Author Tampa Bay's Morning Krewe

The Gandy Beach project will affect July 4th plans.  If your holiday weekend plans include a trip to Gandy Beach in St. Petersburg be warned, it’s going to be a mess.   If you drive by the Gandy Beach, you will notice all the construction going on.  The beach is a mess and cars are not allowed on the beach.  It is all blocked off right now, due to an ongoing construction project.

Back in September, the Florida Department of Transportation, which owns the Gandy Beach property,  installed nearly 900 wooden posts to protect the sensitive mangroves. That also limited parking.  Now they have the area dug up so they can install pipes.

Construction on a gas pipeline expansion will continue to close off large portions of the area for the next few weeks, disrupting access on Independence Day, when many are heading to the beaches in the area, as reported by Tampa Bay Times.

The pipeline project, which will increase capacity for the Duke Energy Weedon Power Plant.  The entire project is expected to last three to four weeks, which now will affect July 4th plans.

July 4th is a popular time for visitors at Gandy Beach and this year a lot of people are going to have to find a different place to hang out because there’s no access and there’s no room to park or hang out.  Same thing happened for Memorial weekend.

 

 

Tampa Bay Area Beaches With Cheap Parking

Going to any of the beaches in Tampa Bay is an activity that never gets old, except for the parking. Whether you’re a local, or are just visiting for a few days, we can all agree that finding beach parking is the worst part about going to the beach. We thought we would make the trip easier by sharing the Tampa Bay beaches with cheap parking.

Beach days can be a very cost-effective activity, if it’s done right. Living so close to the water means we can usually take it for granted. But you can plan for a beach day and only spend money on food and parking. The food costs gets even cheaper if you plan ahead and bring your own snacks. But the parking is always a question. On popular beaches like Clearwater, you can find rates up to $3.50/hour with a 5-hour limit, or all day parking for $30-50, depending on the location/time of year. Many beach lots will also have flat rates for holidays like Memorial Day or the Fourth of July. The super helpful thing is most parking kiosks now work with the ParkMobile app. So you can pay to park with your phone and check/adjust your time while you’re still on the beach.

Here are 7 Tampa Bay Area beaches with cheap parking

  • Ben T Davis/Cypress Point Park

    This narrow beach is the perfect hangout spot. It’s great for cookouts, birthday parties, and everything in between. Parking rates at Ben T. Davis are $2.50/hour. Or you can head to Cypress Point Park which is an oceanfront park with mangroves, canoe dock, picnic shelters, and a volleyball court. Parking here is free, you just have to get here early to claim a spot.

    Free parking sign with blue sky on background

    Getty Royalty Free

  • Indian Rocks Beach

    Indian Rocks Beach offers the most beach access parks (the most in Pinellas County). 27th Ave to 19th Ave, a few FREE public parking spots are provided at each access.

    Indian Rocks Beach Sign

    BBGI

  • Dunedin Causeway/Honeymoon Island

    The Dunedin causeway is by far one of the cheapest options when it comes to beach days in Tampa Bay. It costs NOTHING to park at the causeway and enjoy the views of boaters, kayakers and jetski’s zoom across the bay. If you want that actual beach feel with soft sand and less rocks in the water, keep driving to Honeymoon Island. Parking is $8 per car and that’s all day. Let’s say you spend 5 hours out on the beach, that’s $1.60/hour.

    Honeymoon Island (2)

    BBGI

  • Pass-A-Grille

    Pass-A-Grille also has plenty of cheap parking options. Meters are a $3.35/hour rate. Holidays are a $15 flat fee. You can also find a bunch of FREE parking along 8th ave.

    Friends walking to the beach on summer vacation.

    Getty Royalty Free

  • Sand Key

    The daily parking fee at beach pay stations is $5. This lasts all day making it one of the cheaper options for beach parking!

    Sand Key Park

    Photo: Pinellas County

Launa is part of Tampa Bay's Hometown Morning Krewe on 99.5 WQYK. She has been with the station for 7 years and joined J.R. and Kevin on the morning show 4 years ago. Since then, they have been nominated for not only a CMA but also an ACM. Launa has been in radio for the past 28 years and in the Tampa Bay market for 22 of those years. While working in radio, Launa has also served as an entertainment reporter on a local TV show and has hosted many charity events in the community. Using her popularity from QYK, Launa loves to help raise money for shelter animals and has been a volunteer at local shelters for years. Launa loves the community and writes articles on local news, entertainment, and events and highlights people who are shining in Tampa Bay that she knows others like her would also be interested in reading.

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