Up Against the Seawall

[STL Don]

There is a 7 page article in the July issue of the ABA Journal which focuses on Walton County and the building of seawalls, otherwise known as "upland retaining walls". You can read it at www.abajournal.com. Some interesting stuff.

 

[pgurney]

Property owner Hildreth also is an Alabama-licensed litigator. And he sounds every bit the part as he sits behind his desk and delivers the summation of his case for seawalls. As if he were standing before the bench or a jury, he describes a taking through an examination of Walton?s beachfront homes the day after Dennis.

?No. 1,? he says, ?they were unsellable. There was nothing to buy. No. 2, you could not personally use them. The county red-tagged them [as unsafe]. No. 3, you couldn?t rent them out. No tourists would take them. And No. 4, you can?t insure them. If you can?t sell it, if you can?t use it, if you can?t rent it, and you can?t insure it, it?s worthless.?

:roll:

So sue Dennis.

 

[Kurt]

There is a 7 page article in the July issue of the ABA Journal which focuses on Walton County and the building of seawalls, otherwise known as "upland retaining walls". You can read it at www.abajournal.com. Some interesting stuff.

Thanks for posting. That is some interesting stuff. It is exactly the attitude that beachfront is "worthless" if you can't turn a dollar on it that has us in such a dilemna. You can't make a dime on Topsail Hill State Park either but I wouldn't say it's worthless. :roll:

 

[dsilvar]

..read it at www.abajournal.com.

An excellent treatise on the human ego.
This paragraph spells out the heart of the problem behind beach restoration.

"In late April, he received an unexpected boost in the case from other Walton County property owners fighting a renourishment project, which restores beaches by pumping more sand onto them. In somewhat counterintuitive arguments, the owners maintained the project constituted a taking because the state denies them property rights over the added sand, even if it increases the size of their lots, and because the new sand also would cut their property off from direct access to the water. The First District Court of Appeal in Tallahassee agreed with the owners and ordered the project scuttled. Save Our Beaches Inc. v. Florida DEP, No. 1D05-4086 (April 28). Not before the court, however, were the questions of whether the taking requires a condemnation trial or compensation"

And this seems prophetic for seawalls....

"But despite the potential for litigation in Walton County, experts in land use and planning say insurance ultimately will decide the issue writ large. Most private insurers offering wind and flood coverage have pulled out of Florida, leaving the state to pick up the cost of rebuilding through its own insurance program. Storm damage claims by coastal residents mean higher premiums for people who don?t live anywhere near the sea.
?If I tell you your insurance premium is going to go up 125 percent every year, I think you?ll get people?s attention,? Pattison says"

 

[BlueMtnBeachVagrant]

Thanks, dsilvar, for the post. It is indeed interesting reading, especially the part that suggests DEP will hold off on most decisions until after the gubernatorial election.

 

[Kurt]

Thanks, dsilvar, for the post. It is indeed interesting reading, especially the part that suggests DEP will hold off on most decisions until after the gubernatorial election.

Where you been, what's new?

 

[BlueMtnBeachVagrant]

There is a 7 page article in the July issue of the ABA Journal which focuses on Walton County and the building of seawalls, otherwise known as "upland retaining walls". You can read it at www.abajournal.com. Some interesting stuff.

Actually I wanted to thank STL Don for the post.

 

[BlueMtnBeachVagrant]

Where you been, what's new?

Hi Kurt,

I've just been running under the radar lately. I'm a little burned out recovering from Hurricane Dennis. However, I am glad to see that we're back "in operation" and that the beach looks pretty good from my vantage point contrary to some very specific naysayers.

Heck, even a turtle thought Blue Mountain Beach was a good place to start a family as witnessed by several beach goers. ;-)

This ABA article had some good points and also had your typical slant as evidenced by some "local color commentary". Some things don't change.

Keep up the great work with your site. It's appreciated by many, including me.

BMBV