Last week, the US Supreme Court issued a decision in the Florida case on beach renourishment. The ruling will allow the state of Florida to add sand to eroding beaches without compensating property owners for their loss of exclusive access to the ocean. In such cases the newly created beach, paid for with public funding, becomes public property. Up to 75 feet of sand may be added in some areas.
A district court had ruled in 2006 that the practice of adding sand to the beach, and making that beach public property, was an “uncompensated taking,” essentially turning “oceanfront” property into “ocean view” property and diminishing its value. The Florida Supreme Court overturned the district court decision, however, and several homeowners appealed. The US Supreme Court heard arguments in the case back in December and issued its ruling last Thursday
Florida law had recognized private ownership of oceanfront property as extending to the water line at high tide.
Although the court ruled that no compensation is required in this case, it did appear to leave open the question of “judicial takings.” You can read more details of the decision here and here. The author of the first article speculates that more cases of this type will reach the courts if rising sea levels change the shape of shorelines and if more government intervention takes place to preserve the beaches.