An official has proposed a unique solution for the problem of unwanted fishermen showing up at ponds in The Villages.
A group of residents from the Village of Hillsborough took their concerns this week before the Community Development District Board 10 of Supervisors.
Modesto Alcala who lives on Nance Run described fishermen walking through residents’ yards and taunting an alligator that lives in the pond.
He installed surveillance cameras and now has “multiple videos” of trespassers in his yard.
“I have advised them it is private property and gotten a profane response,” Alcala said. “I am afraid it is going to hit a boiling point.”
Bill Dawson, a 10-year resident of the Nance Run neighborhood, described the fishermen as “pickup truck guys” who work during the day in The Villages, see a pond and come back in the evening to fish.
“Your ID is essentially a fishing rod,” Dawson said. “But are they really fishermen?”
The Villages is now home to more than 750 ponds, lakes and basins. That number will continue to grow. Very few ponds have restricted access. As long as there is public access, anyone can fish.
It’s been a longstanding problem at numerous ponds in The Villages. Residents, many of whom have paid lot premiums of up to $100,000 and more, are particularly perturbed by it.
Signage restricting fishing would eliminate all fishing, both by residents and outsiders.
That prompted a little creative thinking by Supervisor Christine Bradshaw.
She pointed out that the ponds are on District-owned property
“We don’t let non-residents wander into rec centers and sit down and start playing cards,” she said. “Maybe it’s time to start checking IDs.”
She suggested signage that states, “Resident-only Fishing,” might serve as a deterrent. The added layer of checking IDs, might solve the problem, she said.
District officials indicated they would check into the legality of the idea.
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