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June 7, 2020
Medina Lake Park entry rates increase for non-Bandera County visitors
By Jessica Nohealapa'ahi Goode
The Bandera Prophet
Since May 1, the Bandera County Medina Lake Park in Lakehills has been open, except for Tuesdays and Wednesdays, when it is closed for recovery and maintenance. On weekends, it has hit 50-percent capacity, the maximum allowed, by 10:30 a.m. On weekdays, it typically hits capacity by about 3:30 p.m.
“I have turned away more people than I had in the park,” Pct. 2 Commissioner Bobby Harris said. “We are being overwhelmed by people from San Antonio, who have been ordered to stay at home and they are not.”
Harris said he has responded to more than 350 calls per day inquiring about park entry. Under normal circumstances, he said he may get 10 or 12 calls per day.
“I’ve never seen anything like this,” he said. “They’re all coming from San Antonio numbers.”
The population increase is causing increased maintenance, security and a lot of stress on staff, Harris said. “They’re putting myself and my staff at risk.”
To compensate, Harris recommended increasing the rate for out-of-county visitors to $10 per person. The in-county rate will remain $5 per person.
“It’s a Bandera County park… we can ban non-Bandera County residents, but we’re trying to accommodate. We will no longer sell out-of-county annual passes,” Harris said, adding he has come under fire on social media for enforcing the capacity restrictions. “I’m 68 years old. I thought I’d been called every name in the book. I was wrong.”
“I have turned away more people than I had in the park,” Pct. 2 Commissioner Bobby Harris said. “We are being overwhelmed by people from San Antonio, who have been ordered to stay at home and they are not.”
Harris said he has responded to more than 350 calls per day inquiring about park entry. Under normal circumstances, he said he may get 10 or 12 calls per day.
“I’ve never seen anything like this,” he said. “They’re all coming from San Antonio numbers.”
The population increase is causing increased maintenance, security and a lot of stress on staff, Harris said. “They’re putting myself and my staff at risk.”
To compensate, Harris recommended increasing the rate for out-of-county visitors to $10 per person. The in-county rate will remain $5 per person.
“It’s a Bandera County park… we can ban non-Bandera County residents, but we’re trying to accommodate. We will no longer sell out-of-county annual passes,” Harris said, adding he has come under fire on social media for enforcing the capacity restrictions. “I’m 68 years old. I thought I’d been called every name in the book. I was wrong.”