Deerfield discusses beefing up security for 4th of July
Officials considering fencing off areas, cutting time, limiting alcohol sales
Security changes likely are coming to Deerfield Beach’s Fourth of July extravaganza — such as added checkpoints and perhaps less boozing.
The 2019 event would look different in response to mass shootings in Florida and the rest of the country, city officials said. Under discussion are a fenced-off area, fewer hours of revelry and more restrictions for alcohol consumption.
“What happened in Jacksonville is another stark reminder,” David Miller, director of the city’s Parks and Recreation Department, told the City Commission recently. “Anytime you bring a large number of people together, anything can happen.”
The July Fourth celebration has attracted as many as 80,000 to the city’s beachside with its musical acts and fireworks. This past year, even with the Fourth falling on a rainy day midweek, an estimated 65,000 were on the east side of Hillsboro Boulevard Bridge to
watch the fireworks and partake in the festivities.
Miller was referring to the Madden Games tourney in Jacksonville on Aug. 26, when a gunman opened fire on a crowd gathered to play video football. After it was over, two men were dead and 10 others injured.
On July Fourth, it’s a day like no other on the city’s barrier island, said Bett Willlett, a beachside resident. Traditionally, vendors sell alcohol that can be consumed along where vendors set up.
“If you go there, you know you’re not going to get out of there until 11 p.m.,” Willett said.
Instead of an event that stretches throughout the city’s oceanfront, Deerfield’s administration is discussing fencing off where revelers will go and requiring everyone to go through a security checkpoint with metal detectors when they come in, Miller said.
The event might start later in the day, instead of noon, also. And some other logistics may change.
“Since where some of the problems tend to be is north of the pier, that becomes an area that is fenced off. Maybe it becomes a ticketed event, maybe a VIP, sponsored area,” Miller said. “Maybe that becomes an area where we designate alcohol can take place on the beach and wouldn’t be allowed anywhere else.”
Vice Mayor Gloria Battle said, “What took you so long?”