Penticton beach nudists should wear clothes or face fines, says Cary Pinkowski
Pinkowski, who lives near Three Mile Beach, previously hired security to keep naked people out
A group of naturists are fighting to stay nude at Penticton's Three Mile beach, after a resident asked city council Monday to force them to wear clothes — or face a fine.
Last summer, Cary Pinkowski, who owns a property next to the beach, posted no trespassing signs, put up a fence and hired security to keep naked people out, but the beach itself is Crown land.
"The land that everybody has an issue with is Three Mile public beach, and that's where children play and families go down, and now they don't want to go down there anymore," Pinkowski told Daybreak South's Chris Walker.
"We really hope that council does the right thing. I think there's quite an easy solution to it … it's not the city's responsibility to find a home for these people, or mine either."
Clothing optional at 'secluded' beach
"We need to just come and sit at the table and come up with a simple resolution — one of them being you put a sign at the top of the stairs, the top of the road to Three Mile, saying you may encounter a clothing optional beach," said naturist Kevin Proteau.
"It is a very secluded beach, it is not in the front yards of the Three Mile residents."
Penticton Coun. Helena Konanz said Pinkowski's was the first formal presentation council received on the issue, and agrees something needs to be done.
"It really pitted neighbour against neighbour last summer and I don't think we need those type of negative feelings in our community. We need to resolve this," she said.
Konanz said council will wait to hear a presentation from the naturists before making a decision as to what to do about the beach.
"Either way, we will be making a decision."
To hear the full interview with resident Cary Pinkowski and Coun. Helena Konanz, click the audio labelled: Nude beach spat goes to Penticton council.
To hear the full interview with naturist Kevin Proteau, click the audio labelled: Naturist defends nudity at Three Mile Beach.