CORNELIUS, N.C. — The waters at Ramsey Creek are calm waiting for Wednesday when the beach will open for daily visitors on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. to coincide with the end of the CMS school year.
The man-made beach has been open from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays since Memorial Day.
Mecklenburg County said it has hired enough lifeguards for the beach and its other public pools, so there will be plenty of areas around the county to cool off and stay safe as temperatures soar.
One issue here at Ramsey Creek is the congestion the beach brings to the area. A number of residents said that they are concerned about the amount of extra traffic that happens every summer since the beach opened several years ago. Neighbors said cars even park in the subdivisions when parking at the park gets full.
We spoke to Radford Bennett who owns Kat's kitchen, Peninsula Prime Steakhouse and Jack's Quarter Tap. He said he understands the congestion complaints, but the beach is great for people who don’t want to drive hours to go to the beach as well as for the local economy.
"I hope it's not a traffic nightmare that hurts the people who live up here to where they have to wait 30 minutes to go to the grocery store or the pharmacy, but I’m also glad that it’s bringing new people up who wouldn’t normally be up here to enjoy our restaurants,” Bennett said.
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