Marlborough Opening City Beach, But For Residents Only

MARLBOROUGH, MA — Marlborough's Memorial Beach will open for the season on Friday, but with some new restrictions in place due to coronavirus.

Marlborough will not allow outside nonresidents to use the beach, and attendants will be checking driver licenses and registrations at the front gate. Police will be on hand to enforce the policy. Mayor Arthur Vigeant said the city wants to keep crowds low, and was concerned residents from nearby towns without beaches will head to Marlborough.

"This is a way we could get some of the numbers down for residents to use," Vigeant said during a Tuesday press conference.

The city is also asking that all beach-goers stay in groups 12 feet apart, and wear face coverings. Groups larger than 10 people will have to make reservations in advance. The city will also shut the parking lot down once it's full.

Lifeguards will be on duty at the beach, and the bathrooms will be open. You can see the full set of rules on the city website.

Coronavirus is still active in the area, but at a lower rate than earlier this spring. On Tuesday, Health Director John Garside said that Marlborough was averaging about two new cases per day, down from about 20 per day at the height of the pandemic is April and May. The number of active cases was down to 32 as of Tuesday.