“So, I’m becoming a criminal just to get to land.”

Carlos Leon, a resident of a liveaboard community in Biscayne Bay, Fla., regarding new policies adopted by Miami Beach prohibiting liveaboard boaters from leaving their dinghies or other vessels at city-owned boat launches. The small community of about 100 water residents is anchored in state waters adjacent to Miami Beach and is legal, as long as the dwellings remain 150 feet offshore. However, the residents of Miami Beach are not pleased by the liveaboard community and, in December, Miami Beach Commissioner David Suarez, who calls liveaboards “boat squatters,” spearheaded a move to remove a public dock next to the city’s supermarket, driving the liveaboard boaters to start using a city-owned boat launch. (NPR — Sept. 3, 2024)