Want to check out nearby beach conditions in real time before leaving home today? You can check Beach Conditions for twelve Florida west coast counties including Sarasota and Manatee. Longboat Key is located in both Manatee County, northern portion of the Island (4000 Block of Gulf of Mexico Drive and higher), and Sarasota County, southern portion of the Island (4000 Block of Gulf of Mexico Drive and lower).

The Beach Conditions Reports site is a product of Mote Marine Laboratory's Environmental Health Program. The goal of the site is to provide beach goers with information that will optimize their beach selection and enjoyment. These reports are subjective and are provided as a courtesy to the public.

How to Use the Beach Conditions Reports Site:

To select a county, click on the shaded county on the map or the appropriate navigation button on the left side of the page. After a county has been chosen, select a reporting site by clicking on the appropriate green marker on the map. Hovering the mouse pointer on a green marker will cause the site name to appear.

For more information on report conditions see the beach conditions report glossary notes on the site.

Healthy beaches are not only important to our quality of life but also protect people and property along the coasts from hurricanes and coastal storms.

The Longboat Key Beach Management Plan provides for the design, permitting, engineering, construction, maintenance and monitoring of the coastal infrastructure in order to maintain a healthy beach profile. This infrastructure includes the beach, stabilization structures, and beach accesses.

Periodic beach nourishment projects are scheduled in order to replenish sand along Longboat Key's coastline in conjunction with the State of Florida Department of Environmental Protection and other Federal, State, County and local agencies.

All State permitting and cost-share grant funding is conducted through the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP). A website has been established by the FDEP to provide public access to these records. Project information can be found under the County in which it is being constructed.

• Manatee County
• Sarasota County
• Beach Monitoring Results
• Beach Presentations
• North End Structures
• Greer Island

Questions regarding the beach profile status and projects should be directed to the Public Works Department by calling (941) 316-1988.

All persons and vehicles are prohibited from being present on any public beach or bay access or the public beach from 11:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m., unless otherwise marked by signage. Certain activities are prohibited on the beach in order to ensure a safe and enjoyable beach experience for everyone. The beaches of Longboat Key are not monitored by lifeguards. Residents and visitors are reminded to be alert and aware of possible rip currents.

It is unlawful for any person to have in their possession any alcoholic beverage on any Town-owned properties within the Town. This does not apply to official Town functions specifically approved by the Town Manager or to parties under contract with the Town for special events.

No person shall take, or cause to take, trap, net, remove or disturb the plants and animals located within parks or estuaries within the parks or other public property of the Town of Longboat Key. This does not prohibit fishing or cast nets thrown from the shore of the town parks into the waters of the bay, pass or gulf.

Prohibited Activities

• Animals
• Alcoholic Beverages
• Littering
• Camping
• Fires
• Changing Clothing
• Disturbing Noises
• Operating Self-propelled or Motorized Vehicles
• Nudity

Please note: Animals prohibited on the beach.

The Florida Department of Health monitors the health of our beaches. The Health Department takes bacteriological samples at the 100 Broadway Street beach access (Manatee County) and the 3495 Gulf of Mexico Drive beach access (Sarasota County).

Please note that the Department of Health web site for Manatee County sample results calls the Longboat Key sampling site "Whitney Beach" but samples are physically pulled at the beach access at 100 Broadway Street.

Sampling data can be viewed through Healthy Beaches:

• Sarasota County Healthy Beaches
• Manatee County Healthy Beaches

For additional current beach information you may find the following contact information helpful:

• Questions related to Red Tide or health problems related to red tide, please call the Sarasota County Call Center at (941) 861-5000.
• Report Fish Kills at (800) 636-0511 or visit the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission.
• Red Tide Information and Status Reports can be found at the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission.
• Red Tide Facts, Solutions to Avoid Red Tide (START)
• Current Beach Conditions can be found at the Marine Laboratory and Aquarium (MOTE), or call (941) BEACHES, (941) 232-2437.

House Bill 631 passed during the 2018 Legislative Session did not impact the rights of the public to access the Town’s beaches because of the existence of the Town's erosion control line.

On July 12, 2018 Governor Rick Scott initiated Executive Order Number 18-202, Preserving Public Beach Access which addressed public concerns about the Florida Legislature’s passage of House Bill 631. The Executive Order outlined the public’s right to public beach access seaward of the mean high waterline (MHWL).

Longboat Key takes part in the State of Florida beach management program. HB 631 did not affect the statewide beach management program or any beach restoration, nourishment, or erosion control projects that participate in the program.

Any beach restoration, nourishment, or erosion control project that is part of the state’s beach management program is required to have an erosion control line (ECL) established. Once an ECL has been established in accordance with Chapter 161, F.S., the ECL replaces the MHWL, and the common law no longer applies.   An ECL is established under Florida law along a coastal shoreline to delineate the property boundary between public and private lands.  Specifically, Florida Statutes 161.191 specifies “title to all lands seaward of the ECL is vested in the state as sovereign, and title to all lands landward of the ECL is vested in the riparian upland owners...”

“Once the erosion control line along any segment of the shoreline has been established in accordance with the provisions of ss. 161.141-161.211, the common law shall no longer operate…”

An ECL was first established along the Town’s shoreline in years past and remains in place.  The shoreline seaward of ECL is the portion of the beach available for public use. 

Please click here to see a Fact Sheet regarding Beach Access, Beach Re-nourishment, and the Erosion Control Line related to the area around 6633 Gulf of Mexico Drive. related to the area around 6633 Gulf of Mexico Drive.

Lights Out for Sea Turtles May 1 - October

The Town of Longboat Key Turtle Lighting Ordinance provides for lighting restrictions during turtle season. Visitors and residents may notice that some street lights are out between March and the end of October and that some of the Gulf side residences, hotels and businesses control their beach front lighting as well to enhance sea turtle habitat and prevent sea turtle hatchling disorientation.

For more information on marine turtles and turtle lighting:

• Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Sea Turtles and Lights
• Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Artificial Lighting and Sea Turtle Hatchling Behavior
• Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Beach Cleaning Guidelines

Several species of threatened and endangered wildlife make use of the beach for nesting, courting, and feeding. The Town coordinates with the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Mote Marine Laboratory, Audubon Society, and shorebird volunteers to protect the habitat areas of these animals. Nesting season for Shorebirds is February through August. Please avoid any posted areas during these periods of time.

For more Information visit the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Living with Beach-Nesting Shorebirds

See a bird in distress?

Please contact Save Our Seabirds at (941) 388-3010

"Beach Wrack" refers to the piles of seaweed, terrestrial plants, and animal remains that wash ashore and are found in the tideline. Large clumps of wrack are found on our beaches after storms. This wrack is mainly composed of marine algae, or seaweed, which comes from offshore kelp beds.

Beach wrack consists of sea grass, reeds and marine algae that have drifted at sea before washing ashore, especially after storms. After landing on dry land, beach wrack becomes host to a diverse cast of insects and other tiny invertebrate animals, such as jumping beach hoppers, which are harmless rice-sized crutideline. The tiny animals, in turn, serve as food for many other creatures.

Migrating shorebirds fly thousands of miles each year to munch on the nutritious meals found in that clump of seaweed. Wrack also provides a safe haven for many animals that escape predators by hiding under it or by blending in with it. A shorebird can “disappear” while napping among the similarly colored shades of seaweed browns and grays.

Beach wrack also is critical to the health of the dunes by providing plant nutrients and stabilizing windblown sand. The wrack carries seeds from many dune plants, such as beach morning glory and sea rocket. As sand builds up and the seeds within the beach wrack take root, new dunes grow.

On some beaches, the sand is machine-raked, new dunes are manicured away and the wrack is removed. These efforts cost taxpayers, but there is a price paid by the beach system as well. A natural wrack line is a key component of a healthy beach ecosystem.