Parts of Rockaway Beach will remain closed during ongoing Army Corps project

The city’s beaches are officially opening this Memorial Day weekend — but some restrictions still apply.

Beachgoers should expect to see as many as 15 blocks of Rockaway Beach, in Queens, closed off for the entirety of the summer, officials said this week.

The millions of visitors who flock to Rockaway Beach and its boardwalk each year have routinely contended with multiple blocks of the sandy haven being closed off due to remediation work. This summer, anywhere from 10 to 15 blocks of the beach will be closed as construction by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers continues to shore up the peninsula's coastline.

The closures will move westward from Beach 116th Street and eastward from Beach 143rd Street, according to the city Parks Department. The entirety of the Rockaway boardwalk will remain open and up to 70 blocks of the beach itself will be open for swimming seven days a week.

The Army Corps of Engineers set out to build 19 new stone groin structures along the shoreline to stabilize and replenish the beach, Parks spokesperson Gregg McQueen said in an email. He said the department anticipated about 20 blocks in the Rockaways to be closed at the start of beach season, dwindling down to about 10 blocks by June.

Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue told WNYC’s “All Things Considered” on Thursday that the construction this summer would not affect “the busiest parts of our beaches.”

“I think the good thing is that people can absolutely see the benefit of that construction and the benefit of what has been some disruption in other years,” she said. Donoghue added that she hoped beachgoers would “welcome the opportunity to have a stronger, more resilient and fortified beach to take advantage of and enjoy this summer.”

Some of the city’s beaches could face shorter hours or partial closures this summer due to an ongoing national lifeguard shortage. The city is still trying to fill hundreds of vacancies for lifeguards.