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Lake Denton Costs: $6,780 Income From Access Fees: $75

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Lake Denton is rated among the top three lakes in all of Florida as far as clearness and clarity of its water. That's the main reason Denton is a popular scuba diving site known statewide.

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By JIM KONKOLY

Highlands Today

Published: August 29, 2008

SEBRING - Highlands County has spent $7,213 over the past 12 weeks to re-open limited public access to Lake Denton.

Meanwhile, that re-opening of public access has only attracted three paying customers: scuba divers who paid the county's $25 per day charge for divers to enter the crystal clear lake waters on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.

The year-to-date cost will go up slightly, as the county parks and recreation department pays a part-time employee to work eight hours every Saturday and Sunday and holiday, to sit at the gated entrance and collect the fees.

With only three divers paying to use the county's restored public access, that part-time employee has had nothing to do during most of his eight-hour shifts.

The employee is also paid for work every weekday, too. At 8 a.m. he has to open the gates to the county's 40-foot wide shell road that goes from Lake Denton Drive to the water's edge.

And at 4 p.m. every day, he has to return to lock up the gate to prevent anyone from having public access to this lake.

Jack Richie, one of the 11 members Lake Denton Citizens Advisory Committee, said the part-time employee's job will end at the end of his eight-hour shift on Labor Day. After that, public access will be closed to this popular recreational lake unless the Highlands County commissioners re-open it.

Not coincidentally, the Lake Denton Citizens Advisory Committee will meet at 4 p.m. Tuesday in Room 2 of the Agri-Civic Center on George Boulevard

"There is no agenda, but the topic, I believe, will be two questions," Richie said. "One, where are we now? And where do we go from here (as far as public access to Lake Denton)?"

According to Erin McCarta, Lake Denton is rated among the top three lakes in all of Florida as far as clearness and clarity of its water. That's the main reason Denton is a popular scuba diving site known statewide. This lake, though, also attracts swimmers, boaters, fishermen, bird watchers and other outdoors enthusiasts.

Since the part-time employee's last day will be Labor Day, Richie said, the public access road to the lake will remain closed unless the county commissioners take action to restore public access.

Virtually all scuba divers using the lake are getting into Lake Denton by paying a $10 fee to the Baptist church camp right next to the county's lake-access road. For less than half of the county's fee, divers going to the private camp get close-in, fenced and secure parking, clean restrooms and changing rooms, picnic tables, hot and cold running water and other amenities.

The church-based camp also has a family friendly atmosphere and enforces rules that include no possession of alcoholic beverages, no use of any tobacco products, and no use of profanity or any other "bad language."

Phil Elders, a spokesman for the camp, said the language and alcohol rules are enforced, but camp workers won't eject somebody if they light up a cigarette or cigar. The no-smoking rule hasn't caused problems, because few, if any, scuba divers are smokers.

"From what I hear, the divers are more than happy to go (diving at Lake Denton) through the church camp," Richie said. But, he said, other groups who either did or want to use the public waters of Lake Denton, including swimmers, boaters and fishermen, want free public access, which there was until mid-September of 2007.

In mid-August 2007, the county commissioners voted 3-2 to close public access to the lake due to complaints from lakefront homeowners about rowdy and rude behavior by lake users, as well as hordes of vehicles parking on their dead-end street and blocking traffic.

Public access was reopened in early June as the commissioners set a temporary policy recommended by the citizens advisory committee. That policy, which expires at 4 p.m. Tuesday, said:

•Gates were to be installed to open and close public access to the lake, with the gates opened at 8 a.m. and closed at 4 p.m. every day;

•On Saturdays, Sundays and holidays only, scuba divers would be charged a $25 per day lake entry fee, while others, including swimmers and boaters, would pay no fee.

•"This was only a temporary measure," Richie said. He said he expects the committee to come up with a recommendation to the county commissioners about extending public access to this lake beyond Labor Day at Tuesday's committee meeting.

Richie said the $7,213 cost was "relatively small" and had to be spent to reopen at least limited public access to the public waters of the lake.

As to whether the committee will recommend closing, restoring or expanding public access, Richie said he doesn't have a guess.

The committee, appointed by the county commissioners and chaired by Commissioner Don Bates, includes scuba divers and instructors, Lake Denton lakefront homeowners, boaters and fisherman, and homeowners.

Richie was appointed to represent homeowners, as he is president of the Highlands County Homeowners Association.

Jim Konkoly can be reached at 863-386-5855 or e-mail jkonkoly@highlandstoday.com

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