Lighthouse Beach reopens on Sanibel after Hurricane Ian recovery

Sanibel’s popular Lighthouse Beach is reopening for the first time in almost nine months since Hurricane Ian.

Lighthouse Beach will be the last of Sanibel’s public beaches to reopen. A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held Friday morning at Lighthouse Beach Park, where Sanibel Mayor Richard Johnson joined city leaders and hundreds of locals.

Sanibel Councilwoman Holly Smith was mayor when Ian hit.

“Two hundred sixty-two days—instead of saying ‘into our recovery’ I’m saying ‘into our progress’—I remember when we lit that light up at the lighthouse. Now, we get to open our last public beach. Couldn’t be happier; look at the crowds that are here. This is what Sanibel is,” she said.

The lighthouse is a huge symbol for people on Sanibel Island. It lost a leg during Ian (and crews are still restoring that leg) but stood strong. February saw the lighthouse relit after several months in the dark.

The fishing pier and the bayside lot will remain closed as essential repairs continue, but people on Sanibel are grateful for the beach’s recovery.

“Whether it’s a rainy day or a sunny day, sunrise, sunset, midday, I’ve got to see the lighthouse,” said John Lai, president of the Sanibel-Captiva Chamber of Commerce. “It’s the first thing I look for when I come over the bridge, and I don’t think that’ll ever change. I hope that my kids do the same thing.”

The island has been through a lot since Hurricane Ian, from repairing the lighthouse after its leg was torn off to repairing the Sanibel Causeway, so for this to happen today means so much to locals and visitors.

“The fact that the leg was missing, and yet it was still standing was very symbolic to the community, right?” Lai said. “It was broken, but it didn’t fall, and we believe that we’ve drawn a lot of strength from that.”

“I’ve been sitting here crying in my car for the past 30 minutes … trying not to look stupid, but I just … my heart is happy. Things are good now,” said Kelly Raley, who drove five hours to see the reopened beach. “This is my happy place.”

People lined up outside Lighthouse Beach before the sun came up, hoping to be some of the first on the sand once the barricade came down and the “beach closed” signs were taken away.

Anyone who visits Lighthouse Beach on the first weekend of its reopening will have to pay for parking hourly using a new mobile payment system; due to Ian, the pay stations are no longer available.

Sanibel also wants people to be aware of where they park to access the beach, as not all areas are open due to ongoing repairs, and to be careful not to access any private property.