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Ownership Of Tarpon's Sunset Beach A Bit Cloudy

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By Mark  Schantz | The Suncoast News

Published: December 6, 2008

TARPON SPRINGS - Who owns Sunset Beach? That question was raised after the city attempted to show it holds title to the beach at the western end of Gulf Road in order to qualify for a state grant.

Although everyone has believed for roughly 80 years Tarpon Springs owns the gulf-front beach and short causeway linking it to the mainland, City Attorney James Yacavone said this week a title search revealed gaps in ownership and no records proving the city has clear title to the land.

As a result, local officials are working to firm up the city's legal claim to the land.

Yasmin Pianese, owner of the Greek Pizza Kitchen, says her grandfather, Nick Nicholas, a sponge merchant and real estate investor, donated to the city the then-submerged land that is now the site of Sunset Beach.

The deed for the land specified it must be used as a public beach area, Pianese says.

Interim City Manager Mark LeCouris said a grant to restore the Sunset Beach shoreline and build a pavilion there could be in jeopardy if the city cannot prove it holds title to the land.

The state asked for proof of title as part of the grant application, but no one could find it, LeCouris said.

John Tarapani, a lifelong resident and member of the city's Planning and Zoning Board, said it's likely that in 1926 the city just filled in the end of Gulf Road, to create the causeway and beach area, on which a pavilion was built.

The book "Images of America-Tarpon Springs," by Dolores Kilgo, includes photos of the dredging work.

"City planners were thrilled when construction began in 1926 on a 'pier' - actually a causeway - to enhance the city's favorite recreation spot on the gulf now Sunset Beach ... Workers with mules and early grading equipment are shown leveling the surface," Kilgo wrote.

George Billiris, a local businessman and historian born one year after Sunset Beach was constructed, said from the 1930s through the 1950s the pavilion was the place everyone gathered to watch the sunset, party, hold weddings and baptism parties.

"Growing up we just called it 'The Pier,' " Sharon Sawyer, a docent at the Tarpon Springs Historical Society, said of what is now Sunset Beach. In its heyday the area was called Pleasure Pier.

According to historical society records, the Sunset Beach land was created by dredging up the surrounding gulf bottom. Dikes were constructed in September 1926 and sand was pumped between them. The fill was graded with mule-drawn equipment.

In October 1926, after the roadway to the beach was completed, water pipelines were laid and the wooden pavilion constructed. The work was completed in time for the American Legion Convention held there in November of that year.

The engineer on the project was Col. H. M. Salley, who went on to become a city manager.

The pavilion was destroyed by a late-night fire in the mid-1960s, not long after being renovated.

According to Tarapani, a former City Commission member, it should not be difficult for the city to gain valid title to the Sunset Beach land. The city has used the property as a public beach for more than 80 years. It can probably claim rights to the beach as an extension of Gulf Road, he believes.

Back when Sunset Beach was created, municipal records were sometimes lost or otherwise incorrectly administered, LeCouris said. The ownership issue has to be resolved quickly so the city can qualify for the grant, he said.

City staff is still still researching the matter, LeCouris said.

The city could ask the state to convey title to the land to Tarpon Springs, Mayor Beverley Billiris said.

The state gave title to the former railroad depot at the corner of Tarpon and Safford avenues in a similar fashion a few years ago, Billiris said. The onetime train station is now the home of the Tarpon Springs Historical Society.

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