Customary Use Ordinance effective April 1st
The Walton County Board of County Commissioners (BCC) met on Tuesday, March 28th and approved the final draft of the customary use ordinance originally approved in October 2016 and effective April 1st. In October, the Board voted to enact the ordinance with a proviso that a committee of members both for and against would have the opportunity to improve on the draft. The Committee met several times over the winter, finishing its work in early March. According to BCC Public Information Officer Louis Svehla “the board looked at the customary use recommendations made by the committee and approved the final draft protecting the public’s long standing customary use of the beaches.” A 15 foot buffer zone has been established around private permanent structures and changing the allowable umbrella sizes from 10 to 7 feet. “Certainly the public will now be able to traverse the beach without fear,” says Svehla, “they can sit down and enjoy the dry sand but other than that, the ordinance is pretty much intact as it was approved several months ago.” Svehla pointed out that the ordinance only affects the public’s access and does not apply to private beachfront property owners. As far as customary use, most homeowners aren’t going to see a difference. There will still be people sitting and walking along the beach but they need to know that if they see anything that’s against the law they can report that as they always have to Code Violations or to the Sheriff’s office.” says Svehla. “There is not going to be a lot that will be noticed per se. There are still certain things you can’t do on the beach. Intoxication or parties causing issues on the beach are not going to be allowed regardless of what this ordinance does.”
There has already been suits filed against the County regarding this issue, so I do not believe that it would be prudent to address questions or topics regarding legality. It is important that we allow our County Attorney’s office to handle that process. Walton County has some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. As part of the BCC, I believe that everyone should have access to the sandy part of the beach. It is also important to respect the beach property owners. I believe that this Ordinance, in conjunction with our Beaches and Waterways Ordinance that dictates the types of activities that can take place on the beach, does a good job at balancing the two.
To read the final draft of the Customary Use Ordinance for Walton County, visit www.southwalton.life.
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