Despite the mayor rejecting a call to create a nude beach in Penticton, those looking for a new place to tan in their birthday suits aren’t giving up just yet.
“We’re not discouraged in any way,” said Dustin Wolchina, who speaks on behalf of nudists who have been chased from their old home at Three Mile Beach.
They had for decades used a piece of private property bordering the city-owned portion of Three Mile, but signs and a security guard were posted last week to keep out the sunbathers in a bid to make the $3-million site more attractive to potential buyers.
Following a meeting with his peers this week, Wolchina appealed for nudists to respect the boundary created by the Okanagan Lake high-water mark, which separates Crown land from private property. And with the lake approaching full pool, most of the public space is underwater.
“We would like to encourage our local community to act in a leadership role and promote the education of our guests, visitors and friends to defuse any tensions resulting from the loss of the experience that they have come to love and enjoy,” he said.
Wolchina said the group may try to stake a claim to a public portion of Three Mile Beach, but, “We want to know if anybody does go down on the main beach if we’re going to have any problems.”
The group will also form a committee to formally ask the city for help at a later date.
“We’re going to leave everything as it sits right at the moment until we’re more prepared, because we are just starting to deal with this,” said Wolchina.
Mayor Garry Litke said previously the city is “not going to start parcelling off beaches for any kind of special interests.”
He also said nudists are free to move to a different beach, but should be prepared to “deal with whatever feedback they got.”
