Post by ferryfast admin on Apr 12, 2012 11:34:29 GMT -5
Passenger Ferry Proposal up for Debate Next Tuesday
Posted on 06 April 2012
By Kathryn G. Menu
sagharboronline.com/sagharborexpress/page-1/passenger-ferry-proposal-up-for-debate-next-tuesday-17024
A proposal to launch a passenger ferry service between Greenport and Sag Harbor has earned favorable marks from a majority of the Sag Harbor Village Board of Trustees. The main problem as Memorial Day draws near? It is unequivocally illegal to operate any kind of ferry service in the Village of Sag Harbor.
But next week, a new law will be introduced to change that fact.
On Tuesday night, the village’s trustees will introduce a local law to temporarily allow Hampton Jitney President Geoffrey Lynch to seek a temporary special permit to operate a passenger ferry terminal between May 1, 2012 and October 31, 2012.
No vested rights will be granted as a result of any permit being issued, according to the draft law. The issuance of a permit must also coincide with a review under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA), the village’s Local Waterfront Revitalization Plan (LWRP) and be assessed for its consistency with the village’s comprehensive plan for its waterfront.
The board also would have the right to impose any “reasonable conditions it shall deem necessary to protect the public heath, safety and general welfare of the village.”
The introduction of this law is critical if Lynch, who is working with Response Marine’s Jim Ryan on the proposal, will be successful in launching a pilot passenger ferry this summer. However, last month a majority of the Sag Harbor Village Board of Trustees appeared willing to sign off on the proposal, particularly because it was a pilot program and could be shut down if traffic and parking issues arise as a result of the ferry service.
Dubbed the Peconic Bay Water Jitney, the ferry will offer roundtrip service from Greenport to Sag Harbor starting at 7 a.m. ending at 8 p.m. Sunday through Wednesday and 11:45 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. The Hampton Jitney contracted to lease a low wake catamaran from New York Water Taxi that would seat 53 people.
In an attempt to reduce the amount of traffic or parking problems the ferry might generate in Sag Harbor, Lynch has devised a shuttle service to connect Sag Harbor to Bridgehampton and East Hampton.
While the proposal originally sited the ferry at Long Wharf, last week Ryan and Sag Harbor Village Harbor Master Bob Bori said they were also looking at a second site — a public dock between The Breakwater Yacht Club and the village’s wastewater treatment plant. However, this week Sag Harbor Mayor Brian Gilbride said he believed that was not a safe location for the ferry service, citing the proximity of the yacht club’s youth sailing program.
Sag Harbor Village Harbor Committee Chairman Bruce Tait agreed.
Tait said he was concerned children’s safety in sailboats near a 40-by-60-foot catamaran would be compromised. Tait added that the nearby Sag Harbor Yacht Club has the only fuel dock in the harbor outside of a smaller facility at Rick Pickering’s Ship-Ashore Marina.
“That area is teeming with boats waiting to get into the fuel dock,” said Tait. “It is already congested before we even talk about a large catamaran coming through that area roughly 10 times a day.”
Tait added he was also concerned a nearby parking lot would essentially become one dominated by the Hampton Jitney, particularly because it is one of the few parking lots in Sag Harbor that offers long-term parking. The pier, said Tait, is also for public access and he questioned how that could be harmed if the Jitney set up its ferry service, including the construction of a floating dock to load passengers.
While supportive of the passenger ferry service, for one season at least, Tait said he would also like to ensure the Jitney pays a premium dockage rate should it be approved for Long Wharf.
“I think at the end of the day if the ferry is a good project it should be at our commercial pier — Long Wharf,” said Tait. “We are doing this on a trial basis so we can see how the pedestrian access at Long Wharf works this season. If this doesn’t cause problems I am in favor of it. But if it does look like it will cause problems then I do not believe there is enough in this for the Village of Sag Harbor for us to do this. There is not much for us to gain if this is going to become a headache.”
However, at last month’s Sag Harbor Village Board of Trustees meeting, a majority of that board appeared willing to give Lynch and Ryan one season to prove the ferry’s benefits and show it will not be a detriment to residents.
One trustee – deputy mayor Tim Culver – offered a dissenting vote towards changing the village law, albeit temporarily. This week he praised Mayor Gilbride for having the courage to move forward with the pilot program, but remained concerned about the doors this could open for Sag Harbor.
“I don’t want to say it should never happen, but I do get a little nervous,” said Culver on Monday. “It is a pretty big material change for the village and we are a village that has been consistently against ferries.”
Culver said he did trust that Village Attorney Fred W. Thiele, Jr. could ensure Lynch would not have rights to a ferry service once the local law expired should the village want to discontinue it. However, as a resident who lives near Bay Street Culver questioned whether it was even possible for the ferry service not to impact residents of the neighborhood.
“Bay Street on its own, in the middle of the summer, is already busy,” said Culver. “This is a respectable debate and a helpful one. I am not calling for pitchforks, but no one has shown me there is a real need for a ferry to accommodate the traffic between Greenport and Sag Harbor. I like Greenport. I go there a lot on my boat; but I have yet to see there is an overall need for this.”
Culver added he was concerned this could open the door for the Jitney, or another passenger ferry service, to institute ferries to and from larger markets like New York City and wondered what the village could do to stop that if it approved the service in the long run.
“I get the mayor’s point — you can’t always say, ‘no’,” said Culver. “Someone can’t really understand the impact of this kind of service through a study and I get that. It takes courage, but I am just not sure yet.”
On Monday, Ryan said he and Lynch were committed to working with the village to find the best location for the passenger ferry, if it is approved, and would be willing to pay for dockage.
“And we would probably want to contribute to the revitalization of Long Wharf in a monetary way,” said Ryan. “We want to add towards the beautification of Sag Harbor’s waterfront. It has to be a safe and pleasant environment, for residents, but also for our clients. Ultimately, we feel this is not about us shaping this project. We want the community to shape it with what they need.”
Outside of the Village of Sag Harbor, the proposal also needs the approval of the Village of Greenport.
Last week, Greenport Mayor David Nyce said his village’s major concerns are traffic and ensuring the water is not polluted by the service.
“It is a very busy harbor, as is Sag Harbor,” said Nyce. “Oyster farming has also become a bigger business here and we don’t want to do anything that would harm that.”
However, Nyce said his understanding is the modern ferries surpass New York State Department of Environmental Conservation standards and the general feeling in Greenport is to give the passenger ferry service a shot.
“If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work,” said Nyce.
Now, said Nyce, given that ferry service is illegal in Sag Harbor, Greenport will await the outcome of Tuesday’s meeting before discussing the matter further. Without Sag Harbor agreeing to change its laws, he noted, the whole concept is dead in the water.