Busy holiday weekend on the island

GALVESTON — If minute enough measurements could be taken, the island might be found to float a little higher today. The Memorial Day crowds that descended upon Galveston, the sea of cars that shimmered in the heat at Stewart Beach and along the seawall, the barbecue grills in nearly every truck bed, the colored tents, canopies and umbrellas clustered at the waterline like a mass of melted crayon, are all but gone now.

Sun-sapped revelers began loading up Monday and trickling out of town. Then in the evening, as in one coordinated exodus, much of the rest set off to points unknown up Interstate 45.

Behind them they left often equally sapped servers, clerks, police, emergency responders and hotel workers.

Yet, tired as they may be, many on the island are calling this year’s Memorial Day weekend a great one.

“This was exactly what we needed,” Galveston Island Beach Patrol Chief Peter Davis said. “For as many people as we had down here, things went very smoothly.”

Davis said park and beach attendance was up 10 to 15 percent from last year. Which means all the more because last year, despite economic downturn, also was a good year.

On East Beach, for example, more than 3,000 cars were parked Sunday. On the same day last year, there were 2,866. The numbers on Stewart Beach were similar, Davis said.

“I think all of Houston was down here,” he said, although he said he saw many Mississippi and Louisiana license plates as well, likely because of oil contamination on the beaches of those states.

The crowds meant some stressful moments for those responsible for safety. Davis said the beach patrol moved 1,600 swimmers from dangerous areas and helped track down 56 lost kids.

But busy can be good in other venues. Area restaurants, like The Spot, 3204 Seawall Blvd., reported robust business all weekend long. Manager Theresa Falcon said she agrees this year has been a bit busier than last year.

Falcon said the bar and restaurant, which serves gourmet burgers and po-boys, and its two adjacent lounges, The Drip and The Squeeze, are built to accommodate about 300 patrons. They were at or near that number nearly all weekend, she said.

Hotels along the seawall and across the island also reported a strong weekend. The Galvez, San Luis, Holiday Inn on the beach and others reported reaching full occupancy Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Quite a few people also decided to stay over Monday night as well, hoteliers said. Management at each of the hotels said the weekend was “consistently busy.”