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Life's (not) a beach in Florida

Catherine Deshayes

In a move that could affect millions of homeowners in Florida, oceanfront landowners are begging the Supreme Court to rule that beach replenishment projects restrict their access to the beach, thus lowering the value of their properties...

The argument, which is the culmination of a legal battle that began in 2003, is to go to court this week.

A group of five beachfront homeowners in Destin in the Panhandle of the state, protested what a replenishment project was doing to their property lines and formed a group called ‘Stop the Beach Renourishment Inc.'

The replenishment project, which added sand to the beach in Destin, moved the high-water mark much further away from the beachfront homes, creating a huge sand barrier between the properties and the water. This, say the owners, has drastically lowered their value and they demanded compensation in return.

Florida's Supreme Court ruled that pouring new sand onto a beach protects the properties as many are at risk of falling victim to erosion in the future.

They threw out the idea of compensation as homeowners ‘still had access to the water.'

Now, in the final hearing, the owners are asking the court to reconsider their stance. If they are successful, it could prove costly for the State which already spends millions of dollars tackling erosion along the state's 825 miles of beaches and carrying out beach replenishment projects.

For example, the adding of more sand to Destin beach cost a whopping $15 million.

Since replenishment projects began in the 1970s, Florida has restored more than 200 miles of beaches in 61 projects.

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Picture by ohinsanity