Neighbors are trying to shut down a queer nude beach, but a judge just stopped them

A judge in the case said nudity wasn't the problem.

Supporters of the Denny Blaine Park nude beach in Seattle, Washington got a mixed verdict last week, after a neighborhood group tried to shut down the popular LGBTQ+ gathering spot.

The judge in the case agreed that public sex and masturbation remain a public nuisance at the park, but declined to close it.

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The park, located on the shore of Lake Washington, has been home to nude sunbathers for decades. But in recent years, it has been the target of wealthy homeowners complaining about lewd conduct from visitors.

In late 2023, beachgoers learned of a plan to construct a playground at Denny Blaine, after homeowner Stuart Sloan (who lives directly across the street from the park) anonymously donated $1 million for construction. That plan failed after public uproar.

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Beach supporters accused Sloane and the neighborhood group, Denny Blaine Park for All, of surveilling visitors and mount a pressure campaign on government officials that compelled police to harass beach users. In May 2025, police swept through the park, ordering sunbathers to cover up, despite a Seattle law allowing public nudity.

Public outcry followed again, after a transgender woman defending her right to go nude was banned from the beach — her complaints went viral.

Neighbors responded by suing Seattle municipal officials and demanding that they close the park for good. These neighbors were met in court by Friends of Denny Blaine, an LGBTQ+-led advocacy organization that intervened in the case, arguing the park should remain a gathering place for the queer community and opposing any restrictions on nudity or access.

Following a multi-day bench trial this spring, the judge in the case declined the neighbors’ demand to close Denny Blaine, but ordered the city to end the “public nuisance” of public sex.

“This Court grants Plaintiff’s request for Permanent Injunction; however, the Court denies Plaintiff’s request to close the Park,” Judge Samuel Chung wrote in a 14-page opinion, agreeing that the city needed to do more to abate the offending behavior through additional operational changes, KOMO News reports.

According to Chung’s ruling, instances of lewd behavior began growing in 2010 and increased after the COVID-19 pandemic. The judge cited newspaper reports and nearby residents’ complaints of escalating incidents of public masturbation, sexual acts, voyeurism and trespassing. The court concluded that those activities — though not the nudity itself — substantially interfered with nearby residents’ ability to use and enjoy their homes.

Permanently closing the park, however, was not the appropriate long-term solution, Chung said.

The judge’s ruling included orders to implement a code of conduct at Denny Blaine to address overcrowding, safety, and prohibited behavior; to adequately staff the park and adjacent areas to monitor and discourage “inappropriate” conduct; to maintain vegetation to discourage lewd activity; to reduce the visibility of nude visitors from neighboring homes; and to install explicit signage notifying visitors of what behavior is and isn’t allowed in the park.

The city has already erected an unsightly chain fence that divides the all-clothing-optional area on the park’s lower beach from upper clothing-required areas. In his ruling, the judge clarified that topless sunbathing would remain permitted throughout the park because Washington State law does not prohibit bare female breasts.

Both sides claimed victory.

Friends of Denny applauded the judge’s decision to keep the park open, but said the ruling did not accurately reflect progress that’s already been made addressing his concerns.

“In particular, we believe the ruling gives substantial weight to conditions that predate the abatement measures now in place, and does not fully reflect the significant improvements at the park over the past year — improvements the evidence at trial documented,” the group said.

The park “is not currently a nuisance” and “should ultimately be restored to its full historical status as a fully clothing optional park,” the group wrote in a statement following the ruling. “We are reviewing the order carefully and evaluating our next steps.”

Lawyers for Denny Blaine Park for All said their clients will be holding the city of Seattle to account.

“The Court affirmed what they have been saying for years,” a statement read, quoting the judge’s decision: “The prevalence of nudity and lewd conducts have substantially interfered with the Plaintiff’s ability to use and enjoy their properties,” and “residents’ experience with nudity and lewd conduct has been much more extensive, repeated, and harmful.”

“The Denny Blaine community will be laser-focused on holding the city accountable and ensuring it follows the Court’s orders.”

In the meantime, the LGBTQ+ friends of the beleaguered park encouraged visitors to enjoy it.

“Denny Blaine is open,” they said. “We’ll see you at the beach.”

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