Hua Hin Municipality has appointed a contractor to demolish 15 waterfront structures along Naresdamri Road after their owners failed to comply with removal orders following a final Supreme Administrative Court ruling.
The municipality and Mayor Nopporn Wutthikul announced the decision on their official Facebook pages on Thursday (3 Sept), after a meeting chaired by the mayor.
The structures stand between Hua Hin Fishing Pier and the Chao Mae Thap Thim Shrine.
Owners were given 30 days from receipt of formal notices to remove the buildings themselves. The municipality said no owner had reported completing the work and that officials would now proceed in accordance with the ruling and relevant laws.
No demolition date was announced.
Decades-long dispute over Hua Hin waterfront structures
The move is the latest stage in a dispute dating back at least to 2002 over homes, seafood restaurants, guesthouses and other buildings along the roughly 400-metre stretch of beachfront.
Authorities maintain that the structures occupy beach or tidal land forming part of the state-owned public domain, with some extending over the sea.
Residents and owners have disputed that position for years. Some say their families belonged to Hua Hin’s original fishing community and occupied the area before the town developed as a resort. They have cited old property records, tax receipts, permits and previous official recognition as evidence supporting their right to remain. However, not all occupants have formal title deeds for land on the seaward side of the road.
Around 40 buildings were targeted for removal in 2016. Some owners later dismantled their properties, while others challenged municipal orders in the Administrative Court.
In 2018, the Phetchaburi Administrative Court upheld demolition orders in several cases, finding that the disputed buildings stood on state-owned public land. Appeals continued to the Supreme Administrative Court.
In June 2025, Hua Hin Today reported that more than 30 structures faced another demolition deadline under an enforcement process involving the Marine Department. The municipality did not explain how the 15 structures named on Thursday relate to that larger group.