This is
about more than just sailboats and yachts that cruise - Florida may ban
all overnight anchoring along the ICW if this passes. The subcommittee
meets in less than half an hour! Send an email to or call Tallahassee!
Lawmakers May Ban Anchoring of Boats in Intracoastal Waterway
EXPAND
|
Yachts anchored in Fort Lauderdale’s Middle River
basin, which would be illegal if proposed legislation passes. Photo
by:Branon Edwards
|
A battle is heating up between rich owners of waterfront
property and boaters who, instead of docking, use anchors to keep their
boats cheaply in the Intracoastal Waterway. The rich have argued that
boaters ruin their view — especially ones that have abandoned decrepit
vessels. Many boaters, however, contend that they are responsible and
have rights to use the waterways.
As
they say, “the squeaky wheel gets the grease.” In this case, the
squeaky wheel appears to be wealthy property owners along Florida’s
Intracoastal Waterway and the grease is a nasty bit of proposed
legislation known in the House as as HB1051 and in the Senate as
SB1260.
Both bills in Tallahassee aim to make it illegal to anchor overnight in
parts of the Intracoastal Waterway despite the waterway having been
used for this purpose since its inception.
It seems that some
Florida homeowners believe they have rights that extend past their
property lines. They may not own the bay bottom, riparian rights, or
even the air rights, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t feel that
they’re entitled to an unobstructed view or privacy that extends beyond
their legal ownership.
One Miami Beach homeowner who has become
well-known in this debate is Frank Karlton, who went so far as to anchor
dozens of small boats around his property to keep boaters away and
“protect his privacy.” One would think that the resulting eyesore of his
bird feces-encrusted dinghies without proper anchor lighting would have
been worse than a few sailboats, but nevertheless, the violation went
ignored by local law enforcement for quite some time.
While there
are truly legitimate concerns about derelict vessels, the occasional
disrespectful yahoo, and the irresponsible dumping of sewage and trash
by a few offenders, derelict boats and scofflaw boat owners are not the
only ones who will be affected by this legislation.
In speaking with Steven Kaufmann of the
Seven Seas Cruising Association (SSCA),
a group of active and concerned boating enthusiasts, it is apparent
that the problem is actually more complex than just a few boats
anchoring as they transit the Intracoastal. Kaufmann says, “One of the
issues is that derelict boats get lumped in with actual cruisers. There
is a huge difference between a derelict boat with an illegal permanent
mooring and a cruiser who is at anchor temporarily on his way to the
Caribbean.”
Cruisers
are folks who live a good deal of their time traveling on their boats –
think mom and pop driving cross country in their Winnebago for months
or years at a time. By the nature of cruising (just like RV’ing),
boat-owners have to maintain their vessels in good working order as a
matter of safety and necessity; they buy fuel, food, boat parts,
supplies, and generally spend money along the way in the various places
they visit. They are, by and large, law abiding citizens who simply are
enjoying life by traveling on their boats.
As
with any group, there are also folks who break down, run out of money,
or simply feel that they’re above the law. These boaters often allow
their boats to intentionally or unintentionally become “derelicts”.
Florida Statue §823.11
defines a derelict vessel as one “that is left, stored, or abandoned in
a wrecked, junked, or substantially dismantled condition upon any
public waters; at a port without the consent of the agency having
jurisdiction thereof, or that is docked, grounded, or beached upon the
property of another without the consent of the owner of the property.”
According to the
FWC website, “Florida
is plagued with many abandoned vessels. These vessels become derelict
vessels quickly and then subject the boating public to safety issues,
become locations for illegal activity, illegal housing, opportunities
for theft and vandalism and ultimately cost the taxpayers to be removed
by Local, County or State authorities.”
Kaufmann continued that,
as a veteran and someone familiar with law enforcement, he understands
that part of complexity of the issue is the enforcement itself. How does
FWC, local police, and the Coast Guard determine which boats are
transient and which are derelict? How long can a boat be unattended and
not reasonably be derelict? What set of criteria is used? How far away
from someone’s property line should someone be anchored? Where do those
property lines and property rights actually terminate? How long can a
boat be permitted to stay at anchor? Is the boat actually at anchor or
is it on an illegal mooring?
Without clear delineations about what
is legal and what is not, law enforcement is difficult, if not
impossible. Of course, this is complicated by budget constraints of the
various agencies and resources available to officers within a somewhat
blurred jurisdiction anyway.
Cruisers
frequently are forced to stay at anchorage far longer than they had
originally intended simply because the weather or other extenuating
circumstance don’t permit them to continue their trips as quickly as
even they would like. Naturally, cruisers tend to congregate in
protected anchorages, both for weather protection and for the social
aspect of cruising.
Derelicts likewise congregate in areas of
protected anchorage, but in contrast, they have very little intention of
moving anytime soon, if ever. Many of these derelict boats have been
sitting for years, slowly deteriorating, and becoming progressively more
dangerous to navigation and the simple enjoyment of the waterway. Some
are owned by folks who simply cannot afford to store them elsewhere,
sell them, or have them disposed of properly once they’ve reached the
end of their reasonable use.
Kaufmann and the SSCA have expended a
significant amount of time and money to help educate the public, the
property owners, and of course, legislators in Tallahassee, “We try to
be good stewards of the communities and the water.” Their lobbying
efforts include a recent press release that encourages boaters to make
their voices heard by contacting their representatives. They also have
a crowdfunding campaign dedicated to SSCA legislative
efforts. According to Kaufmann, this money pays ONLY for the expenses
of SSCA’s lobbying efforts. SSCA as a whole is a very active community
that does a fair amount of outreach, including helping cruisers in
distress from time to time.
In their official statement, they
urge, “Your right to anchor in five Florida anchorages will be gone if
HB1051 Recreational Boating Zones and its companion SB1260 pass. All
overnight anchoring would be prohibited in Middle River in Broward
County; Sunset Lake and the areas between Rivo Alto Island and Di Lido
Island, San Marino Island and San Marco Island, San Marco Island and
Biscayne Island all in Miami-Dade County; and Crab Island in
Choctawhatchee Bay. More prohibitions will come if this law passes.
SSCA,
the National Marine Manufacturers Association, and BoatUS, with support
from the Marine Trawler Owner’s Association and the American Great Loop
Cruisers Association are opposing these bills as written. HB1051 is
scheduled to be heard in the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee
Tuesday January 26 at Noon. We need your help now.”
These
specific areas of slated for prohibition have been anchoring areas for
decades. Property owners in these areas were well aware of their use as
anchorages before they purchased these properties. It would seem
ludicrous that their simply changing their minds about seeing boats in
the public waterway in proximity of their views could result in such
destructive laws.
Wally
Moran, cruiser and author of a number of waterway guides including a
new guide on cruising to Cuba, reached out to fellow cruisers, “We
cruisers are in trouble, big trouble this time. If this bill is allowed
to pass, you can write off anchoring overnight in the entire state of
Florida. That's right, the entire state.” As alarmist as this may seem,
Moran is likely right. In an effort to appease a few vocal property
owners, the legislature is putting forth sweeping change that will have
massive impact both in the near and long terms. Other Florida
municipalities are likely to ask for amendments to block anchoring in
their communities as well.
Kaufmann insisted, “This legislation
will take away anchoring opportunities for legitimate cruisers who are
simply passing through,” and who are spending big money in Florida in
the process. Florida benefits for untold millions in tourism dollars
generated by cruisers each year.
In their effort to simplify the
law enforcement process for derelict boats, HB1051 and SB1260 will
essentially drive away legitimate cruisers from our state. A reasonable,
thinking person would expect there to be some other way to address the
derelict vessel problem without initiating the law of unintended
consequences. In this case, unintended consequences could be a massive
loss of tourism dollars, a rash of business closings in the marine
services industries, including heavy job losses and perhaps even the
loss of South Florida’s reputation as a true yachting destination.
Here is a
link to a list of members of the Agriculture and Natural Resources Subcommittee
Branon
Edwards is a licensed Florida real estate broker who also lives in a
marina located on Middle River in Fort Lauderdale – swimming distance to
one of the proposed anti-anchoring areas.
