During the last two months, the long and wide Oceano Beach has allowed hundreds of people to avoid the dangerously crowded Pismo and Avila beaches and still enjoy the beach while keeping the recommended social distance. On Memorial Day weekend, hundreds ofpeople walked, rode their horses or bikes, played Frisbee and bocce, built castles, and engaged in all those peaceful activities that truly exemplify the history and etymology of the word recreation: the act of restoring, to make new, revive, to bring again into being.

Driving on the beach is not a recreational activity, it's a destructive one. Memorial weekend proved that tourists will come to Oceano Beach even if they are not allowed to drive on it. The driving on it doesn't make the beach. The beach itself is the main attraction. Now, imagine all of those people walking on Pier Avenue and stopping for ice cream and coffee on their way to the beach. Imagine, a bike rental shop and people riding to the Train Depot Museum, the historical town of Halcyon, downtown Oceano for burritos or tacos. This is sustainable and healthy tourism: visitors giving back to the locals while respectfully enjoying the resources of their community. Please give Oceano a chance to flourish. Keep Oceano Beach vehicle-free!

Lucia Casalinuovo

Oceano