A half-mile stretch of Rockaway Beach will be closed this summer because there’s not enough sand there to keep the neighborhood and swimmers safe, parks officials said Monday.

Swimmers and sun worshippers are barred for about a dozen blocks between Beach 91st and Beach 102nd Streets, to protect a dune put in place since Hurricane Sandy devastated the area in 2012.

Queens political leaders were outraged over City Hall’s partial closure of the area.

“This will significantly hurt the local community and Queens economy during the vital visitor season,” fuming Queens Borough President Melinda Katz said.

“The closure of 12 blocks of the Rockaway Beaches is unacceptable, and the Rockaways deserves better.”

Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato (D-Far Rockaway) was equally outraged.

“I am adamantly opposed to the city’s plan to close part of our beach right before Memorial Day weekend – the unofficial start of summer,” she said.

“Not only will this significantly hurt our local communities and residents but will hinder our economy. We have been demanding sand and resiliency measures for our beaches for years – and this is how the city reacts, by closing 12 blocks of the beach? That’s not a solution.”

The city explained it had no choice.

“The dune built since Sandy provides strong protection to the inland residents, but also covers part of the area that previously was available for active recreation,” according to a statement from the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation.

“That combined with the erosion in this section due to the lack of groins means that there is not enough beach area to safely operate swimming and recreation activities in this area.”

The city said about 4.5 miles of Rockaways beach are still available – including the full boardwalk between Beach 88th Street to Beach 91st Street.

“We agree with the Parks Department’s decision to make safety a top priority,” said Assistant Lifeguard Coordinator Javier Rodriguez.

“Unfortunately, there is just not enough beach in this section to be able to allow swimming in a safe manner and we don’t want to have any lives put in unnecessary danger. We look forward to our lifeguards staffing the other 4.5 miles of Rockaway Beach that will be opened for swimming and recreation without putting any lives in unnecessary danger.”