Despite the threat of rain, I skipped work Friday to hit the beach.
And not just any beach. I wanted to check out the action in the oceanfront town of Hillsboro Beach.
Until last week I didn’t even know that this exclusive enclave of millionaires had a public beach. Then I read in the newspaper that the town has asked the state for $500,000 in tax money to help pay to widen its eroding strip of sand.
Obviously, the state is not in the business of spending public money to fix up private property, and Hillsboro Beach gave its assurances that the town’s beaches _ at least up to the high-tide mark _ are open to all.
But when I arrived, I found myself having a little problem.
In neighboring Deerfield Beach, the ocean drive is lined with metered parking, public beaches, restrooms and lifeguard stations. But when I hit the Hillsboro Beach town limit, there was nothing but this sign: “NO TRESPASSING. Beach and property in the Town of Hillsboro Beach west of the erosion control line are PRIVATE. Trespassers will be prosecuted. NO DOGS!”
No dogs? Should I take that personally?
A warm Hillsboro welcome
So this definitely was not the way to Hillsboro’s public beaches.
Maybe if I parked in Deerfield Beach and walked in? But again, no luck. A huge pile of boulders clear out to the surf blocked my way.
Back in my car, I prowled State Road A1A, searching for the town’s public access. There was plenty of parking, but each spot was clearly marked, “Owner Only,” and that definitely wasn’t me.
“Could you point me to the public beach?” I asked a resident out for a walk.
She directed me back to Deerfield Beach.
“Nothing here in Hillsboro Beach?” I ventured.
“Oh, no,” she said as if I’d just asked when the Martians would be arriving. “It’s all private.”
She obviously was out of the loop. The town, right in its application for tax dollars, said it had a public beach in need of publicly funded repairs.
Then up ahead I saw it: Hillsboro Beach Town Hall. Eureka! Not only was there plenty of parking, there was a sidewalk right across the street that led straight to the beach.
But when I parked, the receptionist greeted me with bad news: Parking for town business only. “Your car will be towed,” she warned.
And as for that walkway to the beach? “That’s private access.”
“So where’s the public access?”
“There is no public access in Hillsboro Beach.”
Oh.
It must be here somewhere
I pressed on. In front of one condo a sign said “Guest Parking.” If I wasn’t a guest here, then what was I? A maintenance man didn’t see it that way and shooed me away.
Boy, this was turning out to be more challenging than an Outward Bound adventure.
The next thing I knew I was crossing over the Hillsboro Inlet and into Pompano Beach where, wouldn’t you know it, the metered parking and open beaches started up again.
Figuring I must have driven right past Hillsboro’s famed public sand, I doubled back. But it was for naught. A house painter gave me a sympathetic smile that let me know I was a skunk at the wrong garden party.
“This is all private,” he said. “Big time private.”
But that couldn’t be. If the Town of Hillsboro Beach says its shoreline is open to all us little people, then you can bet your tax dollars on it.
Of course, if you’re planning to go, you might want to consider parachuting in.
John Grogan’s column appears every Sunday, Wednesday and Friday. Write him at 3333 S. Congress Ave., Delray Beach, FL 33445, or by e-mail: (jgrogn(AT)aol.com).
