PORTER, Ind. — A new lawsuit is looking to limit your access to beaches along Lake Michigan.
Three lakefront property owners are suing, saying they have a right to their private beaches along the lake, but a State Supreme Court ruling says the state owns the shoreline of Lake Michigan up to what is called the “ordinary high-water mark.” This means the state is laying claim to beaches up to as high as the water rises and then the rest of the beach is private.
The lawsuit says the state unlawfully took away private beaches from Hoosier without compensation. The plaintiffs said the state’s actions make it impossible to control who uses beaches behind their homes. They also said they have property deeds showing that their ownership of the beaches extends beyond the “ordinary high-water mark.”
Furthermore, state lawmakers are trying to pass a bill this session incorporating the high court’s ruling on the “ordinary high-water mark” into state law.
(PHOTO: Scott Olson/Getty Images)
