Miami Beach, a top destination for spring breakers, is carefully wading into the water this March, hopeful that its break-up message with party-goers and unruly youth will keep trouble away.
Mid-March marks the infamous break for colleges and universities nationwide, long seen by students as a chance to hit the road and find a cheap beach to let loose.
But Miami Beach wants none of the raucous this year after the chaos that erupted in 2023. The city released a video last month that warned potential tourists to think twice before heading to South Florida and told spring breakers point blank: “We’re breaking up with you.”
“It’s not us, it’s you,” says an actor in the video, followed by statements from other actors. “We just want different things. Our idea of a good time is relaxing on the beach, hitting up a spa, or checking out a new restaurant. You just want to get drunk in public and ignore laws. … Don’t try to apologize and come crawling back. This isn’t safe. So we’re done.”
In 2023, local police arrested more than 500 people and seized 100 illegal guns. Two people were fatally shot in separate incidents that caused stampedes in crowded streets.
The experience went further past the horrors that the town has witnessed in years past, according to Miami Beach Police Chief Wayne Jones.
“We have been struggling with spring break for quite some time,” Jones said during a Feb. 15 press conference. “Essentially we want to divorce ourselves from Spring Break.”
This year, visitors will face $100 flat parking rates at select city-operated lots on the weekends, DUI checkpoints, and $516 vehicle towing rates.
Sidewalk cafes on Ocean Drive will be closed two weekends, this past one and the upcoming one, in an attempt to limit people’s ability to drink at restaurants and to protect the businesses and staff.
Liquor stores will shut down at 8 p.m. each night and businesses that rent out golf carts, motorized scooters, and mopeds will not be allowed to operate between March 7-10 and March 14-17.
Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner said all of the changes were approved by the city commission and law enforcement will merely be enforcing what lawmakers have mandated as law.
“The measures I proposed approved by our commission will ensure that our residents, businesses, and visitors are safe and thrive during spring break,” said Meiner during the press conference. “Everyone is invited to enjoy the beauty and hospitality of our city. But we are a law and order city, and we will enforce our laws all year round, including during March’s spring break.”
Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) has backed the city and announced earlier this month plans to send in state troopers to the beach town.
“We don’t welcome mayhem,” DeSantis said during a March 5 press conference in Miami. “The state has a lot going on. It’s a fun place to be at and we want to see people do that, but we also are going to insist that people respect the law.”
DeSantis said a total of 17 cities, towns, and counties have requested backup law enforcement from the state to help with an influx of spring breakers this week. Nearly 60 state troopers have been deployed to Miami Beach.
This week, the town was in good shape as of Monday morning, according to footage taken by NBC News’s The Today Show.
The crackdown on spring breakers in Miami Beach has helped reduce unruly crowds and fatal shootings — but it is also having an impact on local businesses. @SamBrockNBC reports. pic.twitter.com/iAZQi70RT8
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) March 11, 2024
The city attempted in 2021 to crack down amid less serious unruly behavior and was met by pushback from local black leaders. The National Association for The Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) accused the city of targeting a bloc of the population.
“They’re met with heavy police presence, right? They’re met with street closures. They’re met with closed parking lots,” said Miami-Dade NAACP President Daniella Pierre at the time. “What are you targeting? Is it crime or is it a culture?”
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Miami Beach could also see a hit in taxes generated by tourists as it attempts to keep troublemakers away.
The Miami Beach and Miami areas generated $20.8 billion in tourism dollars in 2022, though the breakdown of how much came from spring break was not disclosed in the report.
