A group of Carr香蕉视频直播檚 Landing residents have banded together to ensure Gable Beach remains accessible to the public.

The residents, calling themselves The Friends of Carr香蕉视频直播檚 Landing Public Beaches, are concerned the district is considering selling the beach access to three property owners with homes that front on the beach area, which runs north from the end of the Gable Road boat launch.

Cara Reed, a Carr香蕉视频直播檚 Landing resident, says the idea of public beach access being sold is something taxpayers in Lake Country should stand in opposition against.

香蕉视频直播淲e have 45 kilometres of lakefront access in Lake Country and only six kilometres of that is in public hands,香蕉视频直播� said Reed.

香蕉视频直播淪o these access points are precious not only to the public, but for fire and emergency response access, from the wildlife side of things and just generally for our environment.香蕉视频直播�

Reed believes the district should be looking to enhance limited public access to local lakeshore and not selling them to private landowners to benefit their own property values and privacy.

Reed said she met with Mayor James Baker and asked if she could unequivocally tell her neighbours that Gable Beach was not for sale, and the mayor advised her not to make such a statement at this time.

Group members have since been told via email by Alberto De Feo, Lake Country香蕉视频直播檚 chief administrative officer, that legally the district can香蕉视频直播檛 disclose any information regarding potential land acquisition or disposition until such deals come before council for approval.

Adding to the concern is the appearance of survey markings along the beach. While Reed says she has been told by the surveyor it is to prepare the land for sale, another resident told The Calendar the orange land markings are meant to re-establish what the high water mark is for the lake after last spring香蕉视频直播檚 flooding.

Reed says the uncertainty has created concern about the fate of the beach, which currently has no signage of its existence.

While many are unaware of the beach access point, the land has been subject to several lawsuits dating back to 1910 in which adjacent property owners have sought legal title to the beach property and not been successful.

Marie Molloy said she and her husband purchased their Carr香蕉视频直播檚 Landing home 13 years ago in part because of the accessibility of Gable Beach.

香蕉视频直播�(Okanagan Lake) is part of the soul of Lake Country. It is what puts the 香蕉视频直播榣ake香蕉视频直播� in Lake Country. When we come down here, that is what we are connecting with,香蕉视频直播� said Molloy.

香蕉视频直播淲hy would we want to sell that? Why do we want to turn this into a privately-owned waterfront property for people who are rarely here, that remains vacant and nobody can enjoy it. It香蕉视频直播檚 my hope this beach remains open to the public in whatever form that might take.香蕉视频直播�

Molloy added that conflict between public access and adjacent private property owners along the lakefront has been evident along Gable Beach as it has in other communities fronting on Okanagan Lake.

香蕉视频直播淚t香蕉视频直播檚 the unfortunate downside of privatization of lakefront properties, but one day my husband was walking our dog along (Gable Beach) and a private property owner actually flung a chair from her deck onto the back lawn as he was walking by, and he has been sneered at on different occasions,香蕉视频直播� Molloy said.

Pat Iwaskow, who lives between Carr香蕉视频直播檚 Landing and Commonage Roads, said she wasn香蕉视频直播檛 aware of Gable Beach香蕉视频直播檚 existence until recently, arguing that public access to local lakefront beaches should be preserved and not sold off.

香蕉视频直播淏efore we didn香蕉视频直播檛 have much opportunity to use this space as it was kind of hidden from us. We need more transparency on that as these spaces benefit the entire community,香蕉视频直播� Iwaskow said.

She added she can understand why private lakefront property owners would like to see public beach access to their properties limited or cut off for privacy and security reasons.

香蕉视频直播淏ut they knew that when they bought these properties without any expectation that would change,香蕉视频直播� she said.

Members of The Friends Of Carr香蕉视频直播檚 Landing Beaches were planning to make a presentation at Lake Country council last night, and hosted a picnic at Gable Beach on Monday 香蕉视频直播渢o enjoy and celebrate our community at our beautiful public beach.香蕉视频直播�