Two families suing each other over the right to beachfront property in a Phippsburg neighborhood now await the judge’s decision in the more than two-year legal battle.

The Hill and Tappen families met in Lincoln County Superior Court for what was expected to be a three to four-day bench trial last week, making their case in front of Superior Court Justice Thomas McKeon over who should be allowed to access the sandy shore in front of their cottages in the Popham Beach Estates Subdivision.

The Hill family argues the beachfront has always been considered a common area and pointed to historical record of tourists on the beach as early as the 1800s. Along with their beachfront cottage, the family owns five other cottages that they rent out. But the Tappens said they bought the rights to the land between their properties, and they are concerned that the renters trekking to the beach will cause further erosion.

Arguments ended early last week after just two days of testimony. Their final documents were submitted to the court Monday, and now they wait for the judge’s ruling, which will take a few weeks, attorneys say. The families chose to proceed with a bench trial, meaning there was no jury and McKeon alone will decide the outcome.

Glenn Israel, the Tappens’ attorney, said McKeon now has all the facts and will rule how he sees fit. He declined to discuss the case further.

The Hill family is hopeful for a positive outcome and has said their case may have bigger implications about beach access in Maine. Their attorney, Ben Ford, said he’s very happy with how McKeon handled the case and he hopes the decision will come soon.

WHO OWNS WHAT?

The Hill family argues they’ve used Popham Beach since the 1940s and the beach in front of these properties can’t really be bought.

But the Tappen family said they purchased about 3.5 acres of beachfront through a release deed in 2021. The land spans the empty lots between their cottage and the Hills’ cottage, so they can decide who is allowed on their property, they said. They paid about $15,000 for the land, Richard Tappen said in court last week.

Dick Hill and his son Clark Hill said in phone interviews Monday that it’s unheard of for someone in their subdivision to buy beachfront property beside their home. From their experience, property owners could only purchase the beachfront directly in front of their cottages.

Dick Hill said if the Tappens had only bought the land in front of the Tappens’ cottage, the Hill family would not have sued them. But allowing Tappen to own a larger portion of beachfront is setting a dangerous precedent, Clark Hill said.

Beaches are dynamic, Clark Hill said, and property lines shift when geographical features, like dunes, move over time. He said he hopes the judge rules that the Phippsburg neighborhood’s property lines can only run as far as the dune grass, leaving the sand between the ocean and the dune free for the public to access.

That way, owners can put up signs or fences keeping people off of the dune grass, further preventing erosion and preserving the beach’s ecology, Clark Hill said. Plus, having the dunes as a landmark will make it easier for beachgoers to see what they can and can’t walk on, he said, rather than relying on the high-tide line or muddled property borders.

Ford, their attorney, said because the family has had access to the beach for 125 years, there’s only one conclusion: that all owners of the subdivision should have access to the beach.