Spring Break at Beach

Between now and early April more than 350,000 students are expected at the beaches of Fort Lauderdale. In five weeks the college students bring in more than $100 million of business.

Fort Lauderdale wants that business but it also wants to minimize problems with a group that size. This year students will find that the rules are tightening but they’ll also find that the community is making a new effort to provide fun and free beach entertainment in the form of Spring Break Games.

How many students can you fit into one large circle on the beach? That’s one event. If it’s not your style you could sign up another day for volleyball, basketball, tug of war or Trivial Pursuit.

The Games are open to all university students. No fee is charged. Just register at South Beach. Organizers will be at the basketball courts south of Los Olas Boulevard, directly across from the Bahia Mar Hotel. Competitions will be held daily Monday to Friday for five weeks starting March 3. Registration will start around 10 a.m., events about 11 a.m.

School Competition

The Spring Break Task Force, which is organizing the games, will sign up teams to compete, university versus university. Teams will be filled on a first-come basis. At the end of the week the university that has accumulated the most points will get a $1,000 cash prize. Budweiser and a yet unnamed second sponsor will contribute $35,000; bars and businesses will add smaller prizes such as T-shirts and hats.

To keep all bases covered, the Broward County Hotel and Motel Assn. is introducing the Spring Break Code of Ethical Conduct. The code, posted at participating establishments, covers nine points such as excessive party noise and being prepared to show ID to get your room keys. The main three are a change in the drinking age, restrictions on where you can carry alcohol, and a network between hotels and motels about problem guests.

The Florida drinking age change is being applied gradually to raise the minimum to 21 from the previous 18. It is being bumped a year at a time, so those who could drink last year at 18 are not suddenly ineligible. If you want to buy or drink any alcoholic beverage this season, your birthday must be June 30, 1966, or earlier.

In Fort Lauderdale it is now a violation to carry open containers of alcoholic beverages anywhere east of the Intracoastal Waterway. This includes the beach and strip areas where students congregate.

Hotels to Be Informed

Finally, the code warns: “If any person is evicted from any member hotel, every other member of the association will be so advised.”

You’ll see another change this year: a new “wall” just for spring break. The idea is to create a pedestrian walkway by blocking off a lane of traffic on U.S. A1A that runs between the bars, stores and beach. Sometimes crowds have spilled over into the road, causing a traffic hazard.

One early proposal suggested fencing with barbed wire, which attracted attention but not enough support. The city has bought a 3 1/2-foot-high concrete fence that can be dismantled and stored during quieter seasons. It will mean reduced traffic and no parking, so try to stay within walking distance of the beach.