Bradenton Beach commissioners on July 17 took a step toward the regulation of commercial cabanas on public beaches as they voiced a range of concerns — from safety and environmental impacts to enforcement challenges.
City attorney Ricinda Perry floated possible suggestions for regulations, including requiring vendors to obtain commercial beach use permits, limiting where and when vendors can set up equipment and imposing penalties for violations.
Perry suggested commissioners consider requiring site plans, liability insurance and a storm response plan.
Commissioners have agreed that unregulated commercial beach setups are problematic, especially the staging of promotional cabanas that are not yet rented.
“I don’t have a problem with them setting up a tent that someone called and said, ‘Please, bring me out some shade,’” Commissioner Ralph Cole said. “But to go out there and set six or seven up in a row with their advertisement on it … the beach is kind of like a first-come, first-served deal.”
Cole has operated Coastal Watersports, a beachside rental business offering sailboats, umbrellas and various watercraft, since 1982 on a stretch of beach owned first by Tortuga Inn when it was owned by then-Mayor Katie Pierola and now at Silver Surf Resort.
After the meeting, Cole shared concerns with The Islander about under-regulated businesses operating on public land. While he emphasized his support for local enterprise, he warned that without regulation, the situation could deteriorate, like in over-commercialized tourist areas of the Caribbean, where vendors walk the beaches selling goods, food, beverages and services.
Cole said there’s a difference between taxpaying vendors and “fly-by-night” operators.
Unregulated businesses “haven’t been paying their taxes, they haven’t been doing it the right way and they’re operating in an unsafe manner,” Cole said.
During the meeting, Commissioner Debbie Scaccianoce also raised safety concerns, specifically about unattended cabanas in severe weather.
“When the weather changes, which it does on a dime here, those people just vacate those cabanas and leave the chairs and everything else laying around,” she said. Cabanas, umbrellas and other items can become projectiles. She said the city needs to ensure businesses are responsible for removing tents when the weather turns bad.
During public comment at the meeting, Peery Heldreth, owner of My Beach Concierge, defended his company’s practices. “We never set up a tent that is not rented ahead of time,” he said. “We have a business license, liability insurance and all of our tents are securely anchored.”
Heldreth also addressed weather concerns. “We use 30-inch round stakes … same stakes they use at airport hangars to tie down Cessnas,” he said.
Heldreth agreed that cabana rental businesses should be operating under the proper licensure and regulation. “We have a business license. We have workers’ comp insurance. We have our retail sales certificate,” he said. “I support everything this commission has said.”
The commission next plans a workshop on the issues. As of Islander press time July 21, a date had not been set.