Harbor Management Commission

HARBOR MANAGEMENT COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES Tuesday, September 22, 2015 City Hall, Room 210, 5:00 PM MEMBERS PRESENT Gerald Martin Alderman William Eyberse JP Mereen Alderman Pete Desaulniers Richard Benoit OTHERS PRESENT Geoffrey Steadman-Consultant MEMBERS ABSENT Acting City Manager John Bilda H. Tucker Braddock Jr. 1. Call to Order: Chairman JP Mereen called the meeting to order at 5:00 PM. 2. Determination of Quorum: It was determined a quorum was present. 3. Approval of Minutes, August 25, 2015: Motion to accept as submitted, Gerry Martin, 2nd Bill Eyberse, motion carried unanimously. 4. Correspondence: JP sent notice to the City Manager that he is not looking for reappointment to the Harbor Management Committee. Regan Miner, Program Coordinator of the Norwich Historical Society invited the HMC to set up table at NFA. Gerry Martin will staff the table. August Budget report: Motion to approve, Dick Benoit, 2nd Gerry Martin, motion carried unanimously. JP noted that Geoff Steadman needs to submit an up-to-date invoice. A question was raised as to the line item for 10% grant receivable. The Committee members agreed it was an old line item and no longer used. 5. Harbor Master Report: M. Valentine was not present. JP gave an update in his absence. The buoy has been disconnected. Gerry said it has been taken in. JP noted that the HMC needs permits for proper placement of the buoy. Gerry thinks the old permit coordinates can be used. This needs to be done in the spring. Dick will keep track and bring it up in the spring. JP has not had a chance to speak to the police about increasing patrols in the harbor. Harbor Management Commission, September 22, 2015 6. New Business: a. Yantic River Dredging Geoff reported that the issue is complicated and related to the Port Authority. A meeting is scheduled on September 23, 2015 which will clarify some of the issues. Geoff will talk to Dave Kuzack at the meeting on the 23rd. The goal is to eventually get enough information to link the Yantic River dredging project to the NPU project on Hollyhock Island. The HMC will have to review and comment on the NPU permit at some point. Geoff will report back to the Commission. 7. Old Business: a. Harbor Cam Installation: According to JP, there are no updates on the Harbor Cam. b. Downtown Policing: JP reported there is no update on Downtown Policing. c. CT Port Authority: Geoff reported said the legislation was rushed and has still not been clarified. d. Kayak Trail Map Sign Installation: JP met with Angelo Yeitz of the Norwich Department of Public Works. Due to the brackets necessary for the sign, it may go on other side of boat launch from where it was initially intended to be installed. JP will touch base with Angelo again to move that along. Geoff talked with Jason Vincent of NCDC. He has directional signs to launch ramp which can be mounted on existing street signs. e. No Wake Buoy Application- Buoy Move Status: Please refer to Correspondence section above. Issue was discussed earlier in the meeting. 1 Terminal Way: Soil remediation is being done on the one hot spot which was identified during testing. Per JP, Peter Davis, Director of Planning & Neighborhood Services, said it will be done by early October. Tighe and Bond will perform the building abatement and site remediation. If funding falls into place, Gary Evans, Community Development Supervisor, will submit an application for clean-up. If the building is purchased, the project will need funds for design and construction. JP suggests waiting for the estimates on building abatement and the decision on property acquisition before applying for further funding. Geoff suggested that all of the projects are tied together, so it would be advantageous to create a combined project and seek funding as a larger project with a unified vision. JP reported that per Gary Evans, the City has received funding for Shipping Street. They will advertise an RFP for that by the end of October. Harbor Management Commission, September 22, 2015  When this is on the agenda, hopefully in October, JP will go to the City Council meeting to answer questions and address the unified vision. The HMC will continue to follow their mission statement. Discussion ensued regarding the iron works and development ideas. Geoff had an email regarding state funding through DEEP for acquiring green spaces which will be forwarded to JP. JP will ask for a meeting with Gary Evans and Mayor Deb Hinchey to see if he can get Economic Development Commissioner to come to Norwich again. The City needs a mechanism to achieve this unified vision. 8. Citizen Comment: None 9. Other: JP reported that a member of HMC needs to serve on the Rock the Docks Committee. JP plans to stay involved. Gerry Martin will serve and also stay on HMC. Discussion ensued on the positive feedback and public image of the HMC resulting from the association with Rock the Docks. Gerry brought up Mr. Richardson, who posted on Facebook asking why the Shetucket side of the harbor was closed. Gerry answered his question and told him he would bring it up at this meeting. Geoff mentioned it has been a number of years with several suggested updates to the Harbor Management Plan. The Commission needs to move forward by updating the plan. He proposed a timetable of completion by the start of the next boating season. The HM Plan would be approved by April or May. It was decided this would be a recurring agenda item throughout the fall and winter months. Dick apologized for missing meetings. He is planning regular attendance going forward. 10. Adjournment: Motion to adjourn Pete Desaulniers, 2nd Bill Eyberse, meeting adjourned at 5:44 PM. Respectfully submitted, Melinda Wilson Recording Secretary Harbor Management Commission, September 22, 2015