HOLMES BEACH – A lawsuit filed in 2022 regarding the alleged blockage of a shared footpath that provides access to the Gulf is scheduled for trial in September.
The footpath in dispute is located at the end of 78th Street in Holmes Beach.
According to court records, the two-week trial schedule opened on Sept. 8, but as of Sept. 7 the court records did not list a specific starting date for the trial.
Attorney Robert Lincoln is representing one of the defendants, Oceana Condominium Association of Holmes Beach Inc. When contacted on Sept. 4, Lincoln said the trial is scheduled to start at 9 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 14.
Filed with the 12th Judicial Circuit Court in Manatee County, the lawsuit complaint lists Linda Carmon, 107 78th Street Investments LLC and Minh N. Vu as the plaintiffs. The complaint lists Travis Resmondo, Michael Fronk and the Oceana Condominium Association as the defendants.
The complaint alleges the defendants illegally blocked the decades-old public footpath that provided beach access. According to the complaint, the public and property owners in the area have used the footpath to reach the beach dating back to at least 1986.
The complaint notes the city of Holmes Beach maintained garbage cans at that site until April 2022.
The lawsuit seeks a declaratory judgment establishing a prescriptive easement over the pathway, an injunction ordering the barriers and signage removed, and damages, attorney fees and court costs.
In his 2023 response to the complaint, Lincoln wrote, “Oceana asks the court to rule that plaintiffs have no implied easement, dedication, customary-use right or express easement over any part of its beach property, including the path.”
