Maryland Boaters and Taxpayers Take One On the Chin

And guess who's delivering the blow.

Relative to many other cities and areas around the country, there isn't a whole lot to do in Southern Maryland if you're looking for fun weekend activities or exciting night life. That's why we generally anxiously anticipate summer, when popular Solomons Island bars and restaurants kick into full swing and boats shake off the rust from winter storage and find their way onto our beautiful rivers and creeks once again.

For boaters, one of the favorite local hangouts is Battle Creek, located in Calvert County just north of Broome's Island and home to a large sandbar at low tide that's perfect for beaching a boat and swimming or just catching up with friends. On a hot weekend afternoon, it's practically ritualistic for boaters to pack picnic lunches and coolers and hit Battle Creek before dinner.

Until this year, that is. Word has spread quickly throughout the boating community that "Battle Creek" (i.e., the sandbar) is now closed to the public. At first we thought this was private property that had been sold to the state.

My first response upon hearing the news was something along the lines of, "Boy, that sucks." Admittedly, I don't get to visit Battle Creek very much because it's a little too far away for my 17 foot Whaler and its 12 whopping gallons worth of fuel to reach comfortably. But my very next thought was, "If this is state property, why the hell can't we use it?" After all, our tax dollars pay for it.

Well, ironically enough, I was at the very same happy hour last Friday evening as a guy named Duke, whose parents happen to own the land on Battle Creek that's connected to the sandbar. Duke is a very likeable guy, though I'm not too sure he still likes me after the conversation we had over the use of his parents' property and the land around it.

Here's the deal, as it was explained to me. To date, Duke's parents have generally been cool with boaters using the sandbar during low tide. However, some boaters allegedly have left trash on the beach recently, and a family dog has disappeared (the insinuation apparently being that someone stole it). Whatever the reasons for their newfound displeasure, Duke's parents have successfully lobbied to have the state (i.e., taxpayers) plant sea grass all along the sandbar (and consider it a "wetland" or some such), rendering it unusable at low tide.

I asked Duke if his parents had ever heard of "No Trespassing" signs before, or if they thought they might want to first expect our diligent county and state law officers to protect their property from public miscreants if, in fact, unwanted trespassers were present. I also wondered if -- just perhaps -- I should expect Maryland taxpayers to pay for grass seed for my yard this fall when I perform my own yearly maintenance.

He didn't quite have any answers, and then admitted that the sandbar isn't really his parents' property. You see, waterfront property owners apparently only own land up to the high water mark. Translation: At high tide the sandbar is covered with water, rendering it public property and ostensibly open to public use even during low tide.

Therefore, it turns out that our initial fears weren't correct. In fact, the situation's even worse than we thought. The Battle Creek sandbar has been and continues to be publicly owned -- the government has simply decided to prevent us from using it.

In other words, if I understand things, Duke's parents have no right to prevent the public's use of the Battle Creek sandbar during low tide, yet they have convinced the state of Maryland to use tax dollars to prevent usage of property the public is entitled to use in the first place.

This, of course, is not to say that boaters have the right to leave empty beer cans and other trash on the publicly owned sandbar or on the contiguous privately owned land. However, because one family has grown dissatisfied with use of land they technically do not own, it apparently believes it's more appropriate to empower the government to exercise coercive force over the citizens who fund it rather than, say, appeal to the department of natural resources for better maintenance of the property or patrolling of the area.

So there you have it. The owners of the land adjacent to the publicly owned Battle Creek sandbar now get to enjoy the perks of private property with the added benefit of knowing that the state will all too willingly usurp the rights of the public to get within spitting distance. And better yet, not only are our rights being trampled, but we get to foot the bill for this despotism as well.

Boaters and taxpayers in general should be outraged by the government's decision to restrict their usage of public lands and waterways. If the state insists on making us pay for property it arrogates unto itself, we should at the very least expect to be able to use it.

Contact the Maryland Department of Natural Resources here.

Comments

[dggrigsby]

has anyone contacted the local newspapers. Having
enjoyed the beach and the memories of such for the past 20 years,I believe this could provide for an interesting story. My record search shows
the property was deeded the to the Wells from the father in March 2007. How interesting. We have talked to Mr.Wells in the past and he never voiced any complaints to us.At this pojnt, can anything be done to remedy the problem?

[trevor]

Well, I suppose we could start by running these bums out of office. However, I suspect the majority of people actually condone this type of property rights abuse.

Sad but probably true. I don't know about local papers, but I'm planning on doing a piece for LRC or the Examiner.