Tourists ignore red tide but restaurants see dip in business

Red tide blooms continue off Southwest Florida, yet tourists are ignoring the warnings and visiting the Gulf beaches.

People packed the sandy shores along Naples Pier on Sunday. Swimmers dived in the water, and sunbathers sprawled on towels, including Kyle Fitzminns, a Nebraska resident visiting his mother-in-law.

“The water seems fine,” Fitzminns said. “There were fish swimming in it, and other people were on the beach. It was follow-the-leader.”

The telltale pungent odor and coughing fits accompanying red tide were absent from the Naples Pier on Sunday, allowing the larger crowd. Some dead fish bobbed in the water by the end of the Pier, but fishermen still had a good day.

“I was catching pinfish and snook out there, no worries,” said Mark Hewett, a vacationer from London. “The only reason I’m leaving is because the parking timer has run out.”

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The red tide bloom still ravages the beaches farther north. Dead fish were along the shores of Bonita Beach on Sunday, and Estero resident Ryan Mollric decided to leave the toxic water for the relatively clear Naples water.

“It’s not bad down here,” Mollric said. “I’m not sure I would want to be swimming in the water, but it’s better than" Sanibel Island.

While tourists are still heading to the beach, downtown Naples businesses are taking notice of the red tide.

Kilwin’s Naples, an ice cream and sweets shop, opened a new arm of its business a month ago — a beachside delivery service to hungry customers.

“It’s just a slow start with everything that’s going on,” owner Andrew Marinaro said. “We’re trying to expand, but there’s no one on the beach.”

The new business lets customers call his shop, place an order and receive their ice cream, shake or other treat within minutes.

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However, customers need to be on the beach for the system to work.

“We’re just slow rolling and doing back-of-the-house stuff,” Marinaro said. “We’ll get there.”

Summer business has been good until now, Marinaro said, as local shops and restaurants head into the slowest part of the year.

The slow season is always expected, but Marinaro’s friends in the hotel sector say people are canceling trips, putting the ice cream shop owner on edge for the coming tourist season.

“Everyone got hurt after (Hurricane Irma), and we were hoping for a big rebound,” he said. “Now we have an ecological disaster.”

Bad Ass Coffee on Third Street South has had a rougher time, employee Amelia Maynor said.

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“Honestly, this is all a disaster,” Maynor said. “People don’t stay and linger around as long as they used to.”

The local regulars in for morning coffee continue to stop by, but the afternoon tourists coming from the beach are a trickle, Maynor said.

But not all businesses are in a bad spot. Café Milano on Fifth Avenue has had a strong summer, floor manager Mamassi Tonni said.

“Honestly, we’re good, even with the problem of the summer,” Tonni said. “We see a lot of tourists and locals as well. It’s pretty good. I didn’t expect that when the problem started.”

The restaurant has stayed busy, but Tonni has noticed a lack of foot traffic along the avenue.

“We don’t feel this (red tide) problem inside, but there’s less people walking outside,” he said.