[Southsider2k12]

http://thenewsdispatch.com/main.asp?Sectio...amp;TM=41374.03

Who Owns The Beach?
According to ‘riparian rights,’ it all depends on how high the lake lies.

Jason Miller
The News-Dispatch

LONG BEACH - To many, the line between public and private property in Long Beach is Lake Shore Drive. Those who live on the lake side of the street, according to popular perception, own the beach.

Those who live on the south or east side of the street must find public access.

And therein lies the rub.

"That's the $64,000 question," Long Beach Town Attorney Jeffrey Thorne said this week. "There's actually two questions: Where are those 40-foot areas and where is that line of demarcation at 588 feet?"

While it hasn't caused major problems for the town of Long Beach in many people's memories, the issue of beach ownership has always been a bee in the bonnet of the small town.

Lakeside residents often feel that since they own a home on the lake side of the street, they own the beach down to the water line, as well. Thorne said the notion is understandable, but it's not the case.

Property owners along the lake side of Lake Shore Drive have what are called riparian rights. According to Michigan Township Assessor Terry Beckinger's office, those rights grant ownership of the beach to homeowners from the street up to what's been called the "high-water mark."

Thorne said that mark is somewhere around 588 feet above sea level.

In times when the lake is at its normal depth, homeowners might, in fact, own the beach all the way to the lake. Their property lines, at times, could be under water, as well, Thorne said.

But in recent years, when lake levels are low like they are now, the property between the high-water line and the waterline is property of the state, which makes it available for public use.

"You have your issues with some property owners, but I don't get a feeling there's an issue with the majority of residents," Long Beach Town Councilman Henry Bausback said. "It's understandable because the laws can be confusing. But I think the inland residents and the lake owners work fairly well together."

Long Beach residents aren't totally shut off from the lake as several of the "stops" along Lake Shore Drive in Long Beach are public. Thorne classified the "stops" as 40-foot rights of way from the street to the lake.

Inland residents, Bausback said, are happy with such access, for the most part. Not all stops are public, however.

Long Beach is the only La Porte County lakeshore town with complete riparian rights, according to Beckinger's office. Dunescape, the 11-story condominium tower in Michigan City, has riparian rights, but the remainder of the city's beach front does not.

While the "line of demarcation" issue, as Thorne called it, has created more confusion than acrimony among lakeside residents, it is an issue that needs clarification, he said.

Whether it's concerns over property values or over public access, the issue will always remain.

"As values continue to go up, the more folks are going to be more protective of their property," Thorne said.

"As public beach land goes away," Bausback said, "people become more concerned with their right to enjoy the lake."

Contact reporter Jason Miller at jmiller@thenewsdispatch.com.

[Roger Kaputnik]

It is important that the limits to supposed ownership of the beach is made clear.