A beach popular with nudists in Wisconsin is being closed off from Monday to Friday. The beach on the Wisconsin River, Mazomaine Beach was a popular spot for nudists but the Department of Natural Resources announced on Tuesday that it will now only be open on Saturdays and Sundays from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., reported Madison.com.
Madison.com reported that the reason for its closing during the week is because sex crusing, drug use and sex in public has been an issue.
"The closing takes effect immediately and continues through Sept. 15. In future years, the beach property will be closed Monday through Friday from March 1 through Sept. 15," reported Madison.com.
DNR Conservation Warden Nate Kroeplin said in a news release to Madison.com, "The goal of this closure is to make Mazomanie Beach a safe and enjoyable environment for everyone who visits or floats past the area. It is clear from our records the majority of illicit activity is taking place on weekdays."
"Along with the closure we will add extra law enforcement presence," Kroeplin added.
The Associated Press reported that nudists from around the country have been traveling to the beach which is located about 25 miles from Madison, the state's capital.
Bob Morton, executive director of the Austin, Tex.-based Naturist Action Committee said to the AP that he believes beach goers should have been consulted first.
"Honestly, we're on their side when it comes to enforcing things that are lewd and lascivious," Morton said to the AP. "There's something to be said about consulting the users of the place. There's got to be more to this somewhere."
Kroeplin said to the AP that after they reviewed data, it showed that of 92 citations that wardens issued for disorderly conduct or drugs between 2008 and 2012, 83 of them occurred during the weekday.
"Obviously we're disappointed when we have to shut any portion of our property down," Kroeplin said to the AP. "But our ultimate goal is to have a safe place anybody can feel comfortable using. And with the current activity going on down there, that's just not the case."
The DNR purchased the beach in 1949 in order to open up the area for public hunting, recreation and fishing. Nudists then claimed the beach. "Wisconsin law makes exposing one's genitals a misdemeanor, but a long line of Dane County district attorneys have said naked people must cause some kind of disturbance before they can be prosecuted," reported the AP.
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