Editor, The Beacon:
Hurricanes Ian and Nicole, in late 2022, caused the closures at the Hontoon ferry and Deltona ramp, and the flooding from these took a long time to recede. But that was almost two years ago, and there has been no information in more than a year-and-a-half explaining why the Hontoon ferry and the Deltona ramp are still closed.
Algae and water plant blooms have happened recently at some lakes. If this is a reason for keeping parks closed, we should be told that.
At least Blue Spring has said why they closed the park to swimming. It is because the banks are unstable, making it hazardous for swimming. They have also been honest by admitting it might be hard to make the banks stable for swimming without degrading the run for other things, such as manatees. They said if swimming returns, it won’t be until 2025 at the earliest.
We need full explanations for the other four closures, and any others. Ian and Nicole are not the reason. That flooding receded a long time ago.
Here are the places I recently discovered closed. There may be others:
1. Swimming at Blue Spring State Park;
2. The little ferry that makes it possible to get to Hontoon Island State Park;
3. The Deltona Lake Monroe boat ramp;
4. Lake Macy Park in Lake Helen;
5. Access for canoes and kayaks to Deep Creek on Osteen Maytown Road.
Sincerely,
Mike Monett
DeLand
