When asked for a show of hands to move forward with a plan for Hendricks Head Beach, a room full of Southport residents' hands shot up.

With that, the July 31 special meeting was adjourned and the Southport board of selectmen will begin looking into what it would take to either acquire or maintain the beach's status.

The meeting was a response to a petition started by Linda Murphy to try and preserve the private beach for future public use.

The beach is not public; the most popular section was owned by Ruth Gardner, who allowed the public to use it for free.

After she passed away, the house and in turn, the largest portion of the beach, was put up for sale.

If a private party were to purchase the property, they could close off the beach to the public.

The town could take several paths to acquire the beach; there could conceivably be a case made for adverse possession, or it could buy the property, and decide to either sell the piece of property with the house and keep the beach, or turn the space into a park.

The town could also possibly offer a contract to the sellers, contingent on a vote.

When Southport residents, both seasonal and permanent, chose to talk, the sentiment was usually the same: Southport isn't Southport without Hendricks Head.

“I see a lot of white and gray hair in this room,” resident Tom Shannon said. “This needs to be about the children.”

In addition to being a recreational spot, the beach weaves into what makes Southport special, Shannon said.

“It's part of the fabric; the culture is the beach,” he said. “It's going into the (Southport) General Store, whether you need to or not then going to to the beach.

“That's really darn special, and we owe it to future generations of Southporters, so they can enjoy that treasure.”

Anne Grimes said the time for the town to claim the beach was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

“You will never get another chance,” she said. “It does draw people to Southport; it shows off our friendly community.”

One issue raised with the town owning the beach would be insurance costs. But, due to its classification that wouldn't be a large hurdle, selectman chair Gerry Gamage said.

“It would be treated as a recreational area, and so long as there's no infrastructure like a dock or a float, we should be alright,” Gamage said.

Gamage said the town would also put up signs warning beach-goers.

The other impediment to the town acquiring the property is the price, Gamage said. Currently, the property is listed at $1.4 million.

Southport is raising $2.5 million this year to run the town, and adding $1.4 million, although it would be spread out, would represent a raise in the budget.

But, some places are priceless, selectman Smith Climo said.

“This is my most sacred place on the planet,” Climo said. “There are some places that are as beautiful, but there's nowhere more beautiful.”

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