Maine's Shore Access Public Access Series: Coastal Right-of-Way Rediscovery Programs

摘要

The problem of securing access to Maines coastal shoreline is growing increasingly critical. Insufficient coastal access use to be of concern only to new residents, tourists, and people who made their living from the visitor and tourism industry. It was not usually a concern of long-time residents, however, because they knew of several traditional, locally used places where they could go to clam, launch a boat, swim or gaze at the ocean. Informal, unwritten agreements, local custom or traditional patterns of usage seemed to satisfy the local demand for access. But in many communities, over the last fifteen years, one by one, many of those traditional access points have been built upon, fenced off, posted or purchased by new owners who are unwilling to allow old patterns of usage continue. Other traditional access points may still be in use, but conflicts with owners and threats of closure are becoming more common. The lack of official, legal public access points is now very clearly not just a problem for people from away and tourists. It is becoming a pressing problem for long-time residents as well, especially for those who earn their livelihood from the water. There are several interrelated causes of the problem. They include a loss of traditional maritime businesses which had afforded access to the water, the influx of new owners with different attitudes about community use of their land, the sharply increasing demand for shoreline access, and escalating coastal land prices. Many communities that have not adopted strong protective zoning ordinances are experiencing the conversion of traditional maritime businesses to private, restricted access uses. For example, owners of land used for boat repair yards, small commercial marinas, chandleries and fish processing are frequently being enticed to sell to developers who want to build new shorefront houses of condominiums. Typically, attempts are made to reserve the berthing space and shoreline adjacent to these new developments for the residential owners. If not controlled by the community, this trend of residential uses replacing commercial uses can result in a loss of the types of maritime businesses which have traditionally provided significant access to the water for long-time residents.