It didn't take long for the first beach inhabitants to take advantage of the newly opened Erie Basin Marina Beach. Just after the ribbon was cut I happened to be standing on the deck of the boulevard (see ribbon cutting). Moments later a woman asked if she and her kids could walk up onto the wooden deck. We said that they were more than welcome to come up. As they stood and looked out over the water, one of the kids asked if he could go down to the beach. The woman then asked if the beach was open. By this time The Mayor had joined us and he was overjoyed to announce that the beach was indeed open.
It didn't take long for the kids to scamper out onto the sand where they chased each other around. A few minutes later they hunkered down to dig in the sand. The newfound activity piqued the interest of another young girl who soon joined the other children (with permission from her mother). As city officials stood up at the entrance of the beach, children had already given the new playground their blessing. This turn of events could not have been planned any better. Even though there was a nip in the air, the beach was being used within seconds after opening. Hopefully people will come down this weekend to see Erie Basin Marina beach first hand.