Another Lawsuit About Private Beaches & Customary Use In Walton County Florida

[James Bentwood]

Walton County faces lawsuit over allegedly designating private property as public beach access

Legal battles over private and public beach use continue in Walton County, with a new lawsuit filed earlier this month.

But this time, it’s the county that faces a lawsuit.

A complaint filed by Jaguar LA, a Texas limited partnership, alleges that Walton County designated a portion of private property as a public beach access.

The access in question is a narrow alley in the Stallworth area, near Santa Rosa Beach.

The suit claims that when the county put up official beach access signs and constructed a dune walkover structure, it encroached on the plaintiff’s beach parcel.

Jaguar LA accuses the county of trespassing and of helping members of the public trespass as well, arguing that the alley terminates at the lot line and that there is “No legal right of public access to the beach.”

Similar to the Dune Allen Beach case, quiet title is once again at the heart of this issue.

Court documents show a quiet title was granted to Jaguar LA in 2015, meaning the court established clear ownership of the land.

https://www.mypanhandle.com/news/local-news/walton-county/walton-county-faces-lawsuit-over-allegedly-designating-private-property-as-public-beach-access/

 

[Jane]

That neighborhood has wished it was gated and private for a long time... Taking over roadside and towing cars. Very sad.

 

[joho]

If I remember correctly when the county was building the boardwalk it was agreed between the owner and county that the owner could spend “his” money to landscape the county easement in front of his home to limit the parking. Now he has built another home directly across the street and also has taken away more parking spaces with his ingress and egress. This part time owner wants to rule the neighborhood access.

 

[bob bob]

If I remember correctly when the county was building the boardwalk it was agreed between the owner and county that the owner could spend “his” money to landscape the county easement in front of his home to limit the parking. Now he has built another home directly across the street and also has taken away more parking spaces with his ingress and egress. This part time owner wants to rule the neighborhood access.

Most of the homeowners in that neighborhood have landscaped on the road and taken away our parking. The county should take it back and do brick paver parking all over SoWal where it's happened. I hate to see no parking signs on public right of ways.

 

[joho]

Most of the homeowners in that neighborhood have landscaped on the road and taken away our parking. The county should take it back and do brick paver parking all over SoWal where it's happened. I hate to see no parking signs on public right of ways.

It’s total bullshit!

 

[Jane]

The debate over public beach access in Walton County reached a crescendo at the latest Walton Board of County Commissioners (BCC) meeting when a proposal to file an amicus brief in support of public access in the controversial Dune Allen beachfront sparked a passionate and divided discussion, ultimately ending with a compromise to draft a formal resolution and vote on it at their next meeting instead.

A ruling this month by an appeals court threw out a summary judgment in favor of beachfront property owners, who claimed that they owned land all the way to the Gulf.

Commissioner Danny Glidewell, who faces a primary challenge for reelection in August, sought to take a ‘proactive step’ by asking the county attorney to draft a ‘friend of the court’ brief in a lawsuit involving Dune Allen, Inc., and 11 homeowners over whether the beach is public or private under the doctrine of Customary Use. The push for the brief, which supporters argued was necessary to protect the county’s tourism-driven economy and public trust, met resistance from Commissioner Dan Curry and BCC Chair Brad Drake, who feared the legal action could ‘cripple’ ongoing, undisclosed efforts to secure public beach use.