April Is Target Opening

SEBRING - Scuba divers want public access to Lake Denton restored by the beginning of next summer.

That's not soon enough, though, for the special seven-member Lake Denton Citizens Committee.

At its third meeting Thursday night, the committee set the goal of reopening public access at this popular, exceptionally clear lake in six months, with a target date of April 18.

No recommendations on how to do that have been settled on yet.

Committee members, though, agreed that parking and/or user's fees will probably be necessary to pay for off-duty law enforcement officers working a private security detail.

Also, committee members said it's likely that limits on parking, boating, swimming and the number of scuba divers there at any one time will be needed to guarantee safety.

The committee also supported acquisition of more lakefront land by the county, because public access has been available only through the county's 40-foot-wide boat ramp off Lake Denton Road.

In late August, the Highlands County commissioners voted 3-2 to close that boat ramp, effective Sept. 10, for one year. Last month, commissioners appointed the citizens committee to recommend solutions to the problems of overcrowding, illegal parking, and rowdy and sometimes offensive behavior that led to the boat-ramp closing.

County Commissioner Don Bates, the non-voting chairman of the committee, said the county may be able to acquire the lakefront property of Robert Crews, which is next to the county boat ramp.

"He's willing to dispose of the property," Bates told the committee.

Bates said he has talked to Crews, who indicated he is interested in swapping his Lake Denton property for a seldom used county boat ramp on nearby Little Lake Bonnett.

"He said he brought it up (to county officials) seven years ago and he's still willing to do that," Bates said. The county commissioner said he talked briefly to Crews about a straight-up land swap, which would not have any cost to the county.

There have been no negotiations with Crews yet, but Bates said county officials should seriously look into acquiring the Crews property.

"That would be a long-term goal, not something for the short term," Bates added

No one argued with Russell Danser, an environmental consultant, who said this beautiful lake with exceptional water quality is a natural magnet for crowds of divers, swimmers and boaters.

And nobody argued when he said the basic problem at Lake Denton is that, with only the 40-foot boat ramp, "we have no land mass to support that usage."

Jack Richie, president of the Highlands County Homeowners Association and a Lake Denton Committee member, said the county should definitely consider acquiring the Crews lakefront property.

"That should be one of the options we should look at," he said.

Bill Serey, owner of the Fear Not Scuba dive shop in Sebring, agreed with limiting the number of scuba divers, which has climbed well above 50 in this 65-acre lake on summer weekends.

"It's a safety issue," Serey said, adding, "There has to be a limit."

Specific recommendations on safety at Lake Denton were not discussed, but committee members agreed that the sheriff's office cannot have a continuous presence there during peak lake use, generally Saturdays and Sundays during the summer.

Serey said he wouldn't mind paying a user's fee to take scuba diving students to Lake Denton, if the fees financed sufficient private security. He also said there shouldn't be any problem finding police officers willing to work there.

"Cops love off-duty jobs," said Serey, a retired police officer.

Capt. Paul Blackman of the Highlands County Sheriff's Office said deputies have frequently patrolled and responded to calls at Lake Denton, but cannot be assigned there for a constant law enforcement presence.

"We would not have any problem doing that," he said about the county parks and recreation department hiring off-duty officers for a special security detail. "We're hired out all the time for private security."

The committee's next meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Nov. 14 at the Highlands County Agri-Civic Center.