With its future very much up in the air, a piece of Southport's land and sea has been on the minds of quite a few residents.

The potential remains for Hendricks Head Beach to be reverted to a private beach, which could close the popular summer spot to swimmers and beach-goers.

A petition started by Linda Murphy that has already garnered more than 60 signatures seeks to protect the beach.

The bulk of the beach is attached to the Ruth Gardner house, which was recently listed by Legacy Properties for $1.4 million. Two other families own a section of the beach, which bookends the Gardner portion.

The house was owned by Gardner, and while the beach has technically always been private when she owned the property, she allowed the public to come and use the space so long as they left the area in good standing.

Should someone buy the property and not allow people to use the space, it would be well within his or her rights, Board Chairman Gerry Gamage said.

There has been very little movement, and no mention of the possibility of the beach reverting back to a private space, and that's the problem, Selectman Smith Climo said.

Climo said Hendricks Head Beach might be his favorite place in the world, and would hate to see the town lose access to it.

“It's the not knowing,” he said. “We don't know what the new owners are going to say. They could decide to keep it the way it is – there it is, go ahead and use it.

“Or, they could say 'It's mine and I don't want anyone on it.'”

The board of selectmen said the situation remains tricky for a variety of reasons, not least of which are the property lines.

While the beach is private, the road isn't. The town of Southport maintains and plows the road and the parking lot. The seawall was rebuilt and the parking lot constructed by Southport in 1978 and the town has a claim to that space.

Gamage said the road would always be public, but beyond that, the issue becomes less clear.

If the town decided to intervene, there would be other considerations and limitations, including the cost of owning, maintaining and insuring a beach.

One possible solution is adverse possession, but even that possibility remains murky. Without a clear purchaser for the property, it was not known if such measures would be needed or possible.

There will be an open forum at 6 p.m., July 31 at the Southport Town Hall to discuss Hendricks Head.

Ben Bulkeley can be reached at 207-633-4620 or bbulkeley@boothbayregister.com. Follow him on Twitter: @BBRegisterBen.