Northeast Twp. — Township supervisors Monday morning authorized attorneys to begin drafting a resolution regarding the future of the North East Marina.
However, the resolution would not create an authority to take ownership of the marina from the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, similar to the action taken by the three-member commission Monday morning. . The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission plans to close the marina's private dock this summer. The cost of annual maintenance, especially dredging and sand movement, is rising. The supervisor first wants to create a business plan.
“We want to make sure the agency has every chance of success,” Supervisor Russ LaFria said.
But hours later, the borough council agreed to take a step the regulator did not want and create the authority through a resolution that will be considered at its March meeting.
“We've looked at everything that community members (who have been spearheading the agency's proposals) have put together, and it all seems achievable,” Borough Councilwoman Heather Jones said at the supervisors' morning meeting. he later said, adding that authorities believed it could be done. Established now and responsible for the work of developing a business plan. “But we understand that everyone has a need to know the numbers.”
Officials say the agency's decision to take over Northeast Marina will not only return it to its previous level of use, but also allow the 17-acre property to reach its potential. Discussions regarding its establishment have been ongoing for several months. Supporters say the agency will protect taxpayers from any financial liability, including taxes.
At a joint public hearing on January 24, dozens of local anglers and boaters spoke in favor of establishing the authority. State Rep. Jake Banta and area resident Dan Adamas called on the town and borough to take action at their regular meeting on Feb. 5. Adamus is a member of the Fuller Hose Co. and serves on the board of the North East Community Foundation.
The authorities would include appointees from the town where the marina is located, the borough that shares economic interest in the facility, and the Fuller Horse Company, which uses the marina as a launching pad for water rescue operations. Neither the township nor the borough took action at the Feb. 5 meeting, which was postponed until a Feb. 13 meeting at the Banta office attended by state Sen. Dan Laughlin and Fish and Boat Commission officials. .
Tim Wachter, the township's attorney, cited the need for greater financial transparency to cover annual marina maintenance costs and other capital improvements that the authority will inherit when it acquires the Lake Erie facility from the state. I mentioned it.
Wachter said the Fish and Boat Commission will deduct the cost of some of the work needed at the marina from the property's value in order to transfer the property to the proposed authority free of charge. Otherwise, the commission would be bound by strict laws regarding the disposal of state property.
“There is no such thing as a free marina,” Wachter said.
Several of the 20 residents who attended Monday's township meeting urged supervisors to form an authority and said it should be the authority, not the township or borough, that implements the proposed business plan. said.
what they said
“We're just limping along, meeting after meeting,” said Jamie Lamb, a Northeastern resident who has lived on the lake east of the marina for most of his life. “I don’t think we’re getting anywhere.”
Another resident, Aaron Gerry, told supervisors it gave the impression they were looking for a reason not to proceed with negotiations with the marina authority.
“You're making all these decisions without them,” Jerry said.
Supervisor Frederick Schunk said some people in the community acted as if the marina authority already existed, going so far as to set up a Facebook page. Supervisors Schunk and Lafuria insisted they wanted the same outcome.
“But it would be a mistake to go into this blind,” Schunk said.
“A wise step to take”
It's not clear exactly what the district thinks it can accomplish through its own marina authority without being directly involved in its formation. On Tuesday, Board of Supervisors Chairman Schunk released a statement following the borough council's vote.
Schunk cited recent meetings with Banta, Laughlin, the Fish and Boat Commission and Northeast Borough as “productive.”
“That meeting said the best way to move forward was to get a feasibility study and business plan to help us understand what we were up against in establishing an authority to operate the marina. “It has been determined that there is,” Schunk said in a statement.
He said the town operates on a $2 million annual budget, which the Fish and Boat Commission uses to move sand from west to east (to prevent erosion) and to achieve water levels needed for boating. That's the same amount of money they spend each year dredging the dock area to do so. Activities.
He said developing a business plan first was “a prudent step to take” to ensure the established authority has “the best chance of success”.
He said: “We understand that the borough wants to establish an authority to carry out this due diligence and the regulator has decided that it wants to carry out due diligence before the authority is established.”
Schunk said the town is not dragging its feet, as some have claimed. Instead, it is “moving quickly” to identify funding sources to pay for the feasibility study and business plan. Supervisors also consulted with Laughlin's office about the need to address engineering issues before the marina is transferred from the state to the local government.
“Senator Laughlin is committed to exploring this issue and is working to secure a meeting with the appropriate federal and state authorities so that we can learn what options exist.” he said, adding that the town “continues to support any efforts that would be of benefit.” Both towns and autonomous regions. ”
what's next
Wachter plans to ask the Fish and Boat Commission for guidance on a resolution to formally express the town's interest in the marina. This resolution is key to receiving funding from the Fish and Boat Commission through the Boat Access Plan Grant Program for proposed business plans. The application period for this program has now ended, and agencies must reopen the application period.
This is a matching grant program, so townships and boroughs must raise the other half of the cost of the business plan. Wachter, who also serves as ECGRA's attorney, said the Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority could be the source of funding for the match, but the application window would need to be reopened. Because of the conflict with Wachter, he asked Northeast District Administrator Pat Goerlein to begin negotiations with ECGRA.
Wachter is also exploring ways to potentially convert up to $12.5 million of the Fish and Boat Commission's capital improvement allocations for marinas into funds available to local governments. He said one possible avenue could be the state's Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program.
Matthew Rink can be reached at mrink@timesnews.com or X. @ETNLink.
