Confusion reigns over rights to Cayman’s beaches
After posing a number of questions to the Public Lands Commission on what can and cannot be done on public beaches, the Compass compiled the following Q&A on beach use.
Q: Can a private entity, like a hotel or condo, legally line a beach with deck chairs?
A: Technically, yes, they can, so long as the chairs are not blocking access to the water from the beach. According to the Public Lands Commission, a hotel or condo can legally place a line of chairs on their private land, but not below the high-water mark, as any restriction past this point, into the territorial waters of the Cayman Islands, is considered a breach if it “interferes with the public’s prescriptive access rights” along the beach coastline. Also, “the Crown holds on trust for public use the shoreline between the high and low tide lines, regardless of private property ownership,” the commission notes.
Q: Can I move the hotel’s chairs to make room for myself on the beach?
A: No. The chairs are private property. It would basically be the same as you going up to another beachgoer’s chair and moving it to put your own there. The hotel or condo has the same right as the private individual to place chairs there. The Public Lands Commission says any member of the public “who willfully trespasses, removes or interferes with property that they do not own and without the consent of the owner of the property… is subject to criminal charges”.
Q: Can I put my beach chair or towel right next to them?
A: That depends on where the property owner’s beach chairs are positioned. If they’re on the private part of the beach that is owned by the condo or hotel, then no, as it’s private property and failure to obtain permission would be considered trespassing, according to the commission. It also says anyone who places a deck chair and or anything else below the high-water mark could be interfering with the public’s prescriptive access rights along the coastline and could be subject to prosecution.
Q: Does a hotel or private owner have the right to ask me to move from in front of their property if I’m on the beach?
A: Yes, but again, it depends on where the member of public is and who is answering the question.
The commission points out, “Private land is private land.” But, it says, “It should be noted, that there is a public prescriptive right of way along the coastline to the high-water mark. The high-water mark is not fixed, and thus, it changes with the tide on a daily basis or during a certain period in time. Accordingly, the hotel owners or private owners have no right to ask any member of the public to move once that person is on the shoreline where the high and low lines falls. That person is entitled to exercise the right he/she is entitled to.”
However, the Department of Tourism guidelines say something entirely different. They state that if a landowner’s property consists of ‘beach’ above the mean high water mark, “then the usual rule, that a landowner can eject anyone he chooses from his land, is displaced. Members of the public have the right to use any part of Cayman’s beaches for recreation, even though the part of the beach being used is on private property, i.e., is above the mean high water mark.”
Q: Can a beachfront property block my access from the road to the beach?
A: Well, sort of. The Development and Planning Regulations state that the Central Planning Authority, when granting planning permission in a hotel/tourism zone to a development that has more than 200 feet of shoreline, requires the development to provide a 6-foot-wide beach access path from the public road to the sea every 200 feet. So, this means you may have to walk further to get to the beach than you did before the development was put in place.
Q: I think a property owner is breaching the rules. What can I do?
A: The commission advises members of the public who have concerns or issues regarding rights to beach access or any matter regarding the use of public land to contact the chief inspector of Public Lands Commission Inspectorate on 946-7110 or email [email protected], who will investigate and engage any landowner or property managers about “any possible breach of the public’s indefeasible right to access and enjoy the beach/coastline”.
Q: How much of a beach area can a private owner cordon or rope off?
A: In response, the commission stated that it “does not recommend nor encourage the use of any form of cordoning off on Seven Mile Beach”. It added, “On that note, the answer is quite simple. The Prescriptive Act also prevents private property from extending to the Territorial Waters of the Cayman Islands. The Government must protect the shoreline for public use under the Common Law. The seashore in the Cayman Islands is defined by the ebb and flow of the tides, cannot be appropriated for private use and is open to all.”
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