After parking his car next to the Rickenbacker fishing pier last week, Mario Medoze — who goes fishing there with his family at least once a month — realized the pier was closed.
“This sucks,” he said. “They need to reopen it because there’s not many piers like these in Miami,” Medoze said.
No fishing, walking or cycling, is allowed at the fishing pier after closure for unspecified safety reasons, according to a post by County transportation officials on X, formerly Twitter, on July 16.
After learning from a reporter that the closure was posted on Twitter, Medoze was surprised to learn of the safety issue, saying nobody even frequents the social networking platform. The signs near the pier do not indicate any danger — they just say the pier is closed.
The County transportation officials wouldn’t answer questions about the closure, the findings of the inspection, or of the Rickenbacker Fishing Pier.
READ MORE: Five year, $5 million study for Rickenbacker Causeway bridges
Amanda Maldonado, a spokeswoman for District 7 Commissioner Raquel Regalado, said the department cited an exemption in the public records law when the office asked for more information. Nothing in the law prevents officials from talking generally about bridges or safety issues.
Recent inspections have revealed issues that need to be addressed immediately, the County transportation officials also said.
Since people are isolated these days, Medoze said fishing is like working out for him. He said that fishing makes him feel healthy and free. Despite the closure, he and others fished on the shoreline of the Hobie Island Beach Park — somewhat north of the beach closely underneath the bridge.
“I’m getting some vitamin D. It’s all around,” he said. “It’s beneficial to the person’s body…Coming out to fish is a form and a way to get out of the house as a family.”
The pier is now a family destination.
YouTube videos show many grabbing rods to fish over the barriers of the pier. Content creators come to the area to make tik toks and competitive fishing content. Joggers and cyclists also enjoy the pier, which has an amazing view of Biscayne Bay.
Years ago, the pier was where Cuban migrants had makeshift homes in vans near the dock, selling water bottles.
The west side of the fishing pier was shut down and demolished in 2007. The remaining piece of the Old Rickenbacker is the only fishing pier left in the city.
Medoze said that he wants the County “to get their act together.”
“If they’re gonna close one thing at least finish the other one because if you go all the way down to Key Biscayne to the Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park, they already shut down the little piers where we used to be able to go fish,” he said.
This story was originally published in the Key Biscayne Independent, a WLRN News partner.
