Now for the bad news.
“Restricted”? No, “assaulted”, “mugged”, or “raped” is more like it. But then, you wouldn’t expect anything that might sound critical of local public officials to be allowed, would you? (You might find yourself zoned out of business.)
Basically, a local naturist park on rural land near Topeka– Lake Edun — has been ordered to shut down, despite no charges of misbehavior of any sort, its only crime being to celebrate naturist joie de vivre.
Formally, the excuse is violation of local zoning — even though the zoning was deliberately instituted only recently specifically in order to eliminate Lake Edun, which has existed peacefully in its present location for some time. Exactly why is it that zoning against a harmless hiking and swimming spot is needed in the middle of s sparsely-populated rural area?
The state of Kansas prides itself on its extreme conservatism. But aren’t private property rights a cornerstone of conservative values? Apparently not anymore. If you want to use your private property for naturism, you would seem to be SOL in Kansas. Another naturist spot in Kansas, the Gaea Retreat Center, has also been under frequent attack by the local body-phobic powers that be.
Additional news reports: here.
Originally published July 17, 2005