SEATTLE — Seattle's Alki Beach and Golden Gardens will have reduced hours this summer.
The shortened hours are being tested by Seattle Parks and Recreation to address "dangerous and/or illegal behavior" that has been reported in the summer evenings at the two parks.
The beach hours will be 4 a.m. to 10 p.m. from May 27 to Sept. 4.
Seattle Parks staff, assisted by Seattle police officers, will begin closing the beaches down starting at 9:30 p.m.
The reduced hours will be reviewed during a Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioner meeting after they are tested.
"I understand why they want to do it but it's goes hand-in-hand," said Rick Silva who's lived in the neighborhood since 2011, "It's a double-edged sword. If you have kids and live close by you want the nice peace and quiet because the last couple years there've been a lot more shootings, violence."
Alki Beach's hours were reduced last year following multiple violent incidents at the park and concerns about illegal activity. Some of the issues reported at the park during the busier summer months included violence, excessive noise violations, illegal fires and unpermitted events.
During one night over Memorial Day weekend of 2021, three people were arrested at the park after multiple fights broke out, illegal beach fires were set and a strong-arm robbery was committed. While police tried to gain control of crowds and break up fights, bottles were thrown at officers and one officer’s thumb was broken.
In June of 2021, one person was killed and three others were injured in a shooting near the park after two groups got into an argument over fireworks.
The early closure was put in place over the Fourth of July weekend, and then extended through Sept. 12, 2021, following positive feedback from the community.
However, many people aren't convinced that permanently reducing the beach's hours is an effective solution and feel the early closure may be difficult to enforce.
"You can't take Seattleites away from their summer. You can't do that. We don't get a lot of sun. We don't get a lot of heat so if people in Seattle want to be at Alki, they're going to be at Alki," said Chanell Cooper who was visiting the beach Sunday.
Starting Sept. 5, the hours at the two beaches will return to normal and be open from 4 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.