DEWEY BEACH, Del.- Dewey Beach Commissioners voted to add more rules to prevent teen loitering.
Commissioners decided to raise the fine for violating the curfew up to $300.
The town also granted the town's police chief the authority to close the beaches if they see fit.
The town passed that motion without a vote- saying the chief always had this authority, but was not expressly said in the town's charter. The town will now revise that charter and make it clear that this is something the police chief can do.
The stems from issues of teens loitering after curfew. A Dewey Beach Police spokesperson says there were thousands of teens over the Fourth of July weekend loitering in parking lots and causing a stir late at night.
Town Commissioner Paul Bauer says this is something that needed to be done.
"We have to call the parents. We try to give warnings out. And you know what else what else can we do here?" He said. "People are just dropping their kids off here. And that's not what we want."
But over at Jeremiah's Beach Party downtown, manager Roberto Marin-Landa doesn't think closing the beaches is the right fix to the problem.
"I think more of the teenagers are just going to gravitate towards more of the city where people are, instead of just the beach," he said. "A lot of them will come here and just cause havoc- or in the other stores."
Dewey Police says this authority to close the beaches could also be used during severe weather or if something harmful, like bacteria, washes up on the beach.
These rules go into effect immediately.