Beach businesses are bracing for the impact of the no-cars-on-the-beach order over Fourth of July weekend.
Businesses are hopeful for a successful Fourth of July weekend, but without cars, they're just going to have to wait and see.
"We're here right now and we're having a blast," said visitor Tonja Hamel.
No car . . . no problem for vacation-home owner Hamel.
"We will stay at home,” she said. “That's why we're here today -- enjoying the beach."
She's not alone in adjusting her holiday-weekend plans, with cars banned from Corpus Christi beaches, which is concerning to island businesses.
"We expect to see still quite a few people coming out -- or at least to our parking area -- but nowhere near the amount of people who were here, say, Memorial Day," said Mikel Mays manager Steven Lester.
The reduction in business couldn't come at a worse time.
"It's one of our busiest holidays of the year,” he said. “Between July 4th, Memorial Day, Labor Day -- those are our busiest days, so it will impact our business quite a bit."
But the restaurant’s loyal customers might be able to make it worthwhile."Absolutely,” said Hamel. “That's why we are here today. We're helping our friends here at Mikel Mays. We're about to have some lunch, and we've just been having a great time at the beach."