Testing the sand for Customary Use

[jodiFL]

I think I will just post this comment of mine in this thread too...
"IMO..alot of this could have/would have been avoided if they would just require the property owners prove they own the property. Show a current survey that clearly states where the MHWL is and not some wet sand/dry sand BS. All the sand is wet at some point and gets dry real quick in the Florida sun. I cant live next to a vacant lot anywhere else in this county,call the cops on someone for trespassing then not prove that I actually own the property. All the people are saying that he/she/them are trying to take their property but I havent seen anyone offering up a current survey to show it belongs to them. I am not talking about some plat picture on some website, I am talking about a current, stamped by a registered surveyor, legally binding, survey. I have seen people posting aerial plat pictures but I can do that with Google maps and any photo editing program on any computer. Those surveys would put alot of the "confusion" to rest but no one seems to want to produce one. The DEP required one for them to get a permit to build, the bank required one to loan them money, how about the sheriff require one to prove where the MHWL is. Could it be that the surveys show that the MHWL is alot closer to the toe of the dune than they want people to know?"

 

[FloridaBeachBum]

This is for both you @FloridaBeachBum and @BlueMtnBeachVagrant...

We know of each other but I don't think I have ever met either of you. If I were to come to the beach and sit peacefully and quietly on the dry sand would I be escorted off your property for trespassing? If the answer is no...

If I came and brought my 10 by 10 tent, gas brill, boom box, big screen TV, a keg of coors light and invited 75 first year college students would I still be welcome?

The reason I'm asking is I think there should be a happy medium even though I realize you believe according to the law you don't have to negotiate your property.

If you sat where our family have enjoyed our property over the decades and we asked you to move or give us space; would you move or would you defy our request? It is an matter of respecting our private property rights. You want to act like a self righteous attorney and demand to sit wherever you want regardless of our rights; your chances are reduced to have our permission to occupy and enjoy our property that we pay property taxes on to the MHWL.

 

[FloridaBeachBum]

I think I will just post this comment of mine in this thread too... "IMO..alot of this could have/would have been avoided if they would just require the property owners prove they own the property.

Walton County is free to pay for a MHWL survey to prove their and the State's landward MHWL public property boundary like they did on 2013.

Could it be that the surveys show that the MHWL is alot closer to the toe of the dune than they want people to know?"

Mean High Water Line - think about it for a minute.
On a clam day when has the highest tide elevation been near to the toe of the dune? Much less an average hide tide elevation above sea level over 18.6 years?
If you look at photos from the 1940s the beach is about where it is today - that includes after how many hurricanes? I'm not worried about hurricanes eroding my property in the long term or sea level raise in my long life time.

 

[Kaydence]

If you sat where our family have enjoyed our property over the decades and we asked you to move or give us space; would you move or would you defy our request? It is an matter of respecting our private property rights. You want to act like a self righteous attorney and demand to sit wherever you want regardless of our rights; your chances are reduced to have our permission to occupy and enjoy our property that we pay property taxes on to the MHWL.

I am all about defying government BS.

If... in the case of the Uhlfelder video (you nor your family were actually on the beach) and I coped a squat and peacefully sat on the dry sand bothering no one, contemplating life and paradise would I be removed?

 

[FloridaBeachBum]

I am all about defying government BS.

If... in the case of the Uhlfelder video (you nor your family were actually on the beach) and I coped a squat and peacefully sat on the dry sand bothering no one, contemplating life and paradise would I be removed?

Likely not. But if the Walton commissioners want to litigate for customary use and private property owners prevail - all bets are off. You will have 900+ parcel owners who will be not happy our Constitutional rights were not respected and we had to defend them in court over years and with our own money. Not tax payers money.

 

[jodiFL]

Walton County is free to pay for a MHWL survey to prove their and the State's landward MHWL public property boundary like they did on 2013.

Mean High Water Line - think about it for a minute.
On a clam day when has the highest tide elevation been near to the toe of the dune? Much less an average hide tide elevation above sea level over 18.6 years?
If you look at photos from the 1940s the beach is about where it is today - that includes after how many hurricanes? I'm not worried about hurricanes eroding my property in the long term or sea level raise in my long life time.

Like I said..if I was laying claim to property without the benefit of a survey they would probably just laugh at me. Why, if the property is so valuable to beachfront property owners, would they not be willing to pay for a survey that proves it is theirs? You want the county and its taxpayers to pay to prove that you own something? Nah thats not how it works. Not having a legal description of your property is like not registering your new car. If it gets stolen, how are you going to prove it is yours??

 

[H & Me]

I feel like the most overlooked point in all of this has been.... People can buy beachfront property, but they don’t actually buy the beach. I’ve been searching property for the last several years in SRB. I guess I need to go back and read where you can buy the beach with the purchase of a beachfront home.

 

[Bob Hudson]

And what law school did you attend ?

 

[Teresa]

You left out private property owners. That's the problem. Respect private property rights. Stop the emotional pleas not based in facts. Read and understand the laws and regulations. Stop the deliberate misinformation and vilification of property owners who understand the facts better than most - even emotional irrational attorneys. Things will get better on the beach - don't and it won't.

Not all property owners who happen to own a Gulf front home claim to own the actual beach or wish to keep the sandy beach private for their own use. The Gulf front home owners I know and have talked to or heard from are also people who appreciate customary use of our beaches in South Walton FL. They are not interested in signs or calling the Sheriff.

Gulf front homeowners care about our community. They too are beach lovers. Who also raised their kids here. Who own businesses here. Who love this place who stand for customary use of our beaches. Because they stand for our community. Period.

There are us. But there are those who claim private rights to the beach and so here we are. It will be resolved.

All those who have an investment in the community want what's best for our beaches. They are worth preserving.

Sheriff officers will be placed in the middle of trying to keep the peace on certain beaches. Because Walton County has been singled out and targeted by a law. The governor's EO makes no sense. Why would he need to issue an order to keep public beach accesses open to the public? This was never an issue.

No one expected to have access to Beach access taken away. It isn't a partisan thing in many minds. It is a threat to our community and our way of life - as locals, visitors, business owners, homeowners, and families who choose to be here because of the natural beauty that surrounds South Walton.

The beach is a precious place to live, play, visit and preserve for all of us. Every inch of our beaches deserves to be held in preserve. To keep them clean, beautiful, and safe (vendor free would be a great goal too) so that they remain accessible to all of us.

Keep our beaches pristine. Let us educate our visitors on wildlife, leave no trace, and enforce beach rules and safety. Let us always meet up for beach cleanups throughout the year. Let's work to keep beaches everywhere open for everyone to enjoy. Always.

 

[gailforce]

When you write about the beach, I can really feel your love for it. But opening it up public without enough accesses, restrooms,parking and lots of enforcement is premature to me. We have been busting at the seams here for years. Except for the Deep Water Horizon time when all that false reporting said oil was spilling up onto our shores. Again, I worry that there is a lot of misinformation out there being touted as true. For example, the editorial saying our beaches are worthless and it is being taken as fact. When that is not true, BFO’s do pay private property tax on that land. I worry that the headlines WCC Warns Beaches Could Close to Public will affect tourism. Then these videos! Now, hang onto your socks, cause if you thought what I said the other day was mean spirited, wait til you read my adjectives for Mr. H. But, I’ll just use the sheriffs words instead, “I think there is a better means to get that result.”