BHMA Minutes March 15 2017Harbor Management Authority
Minutes of March 15, 2017 Meeting
CITY OF BEVERLY
PUBLIC MEETING MINUTES
Board: Harbor Management Authority
Date: March 15, 2017
Location: Beverly Public Library -Fogg Room
Members Present: Chair Paul Earl, Don Neuman, David Suminsby, Emily
Flaherty, Pat McAleer, Chris D'Alfonso, Rinus Oosthoek,
George Simon, Estelle Rand, Scott Houseman
Members Absent: Rob Dever (Marina Manager)
Others Present: None
Recorder: Brett Bauer
Earl called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm.
Approval of Minutes
Neuman motions to approve the February, 2017 meeting minutes. Seconded by Oosthoek. All
approved, motion passes unanimously (8 -0).
Facilities Committee Report
The Harbor Master will move into the new building and vacate the McDonald's building this
Spring. Simon asks if the utility costs at the McDonald's building come from the HMA's budget.
Earl responds that they do not, they come from the City's budget. Earl notes that Dan will be
taking over Mark's duties at the Harbor Master's office for the time being.
The cleaners at the Jubilee Yacht Club will meet with Earl and Dever at the Harbor Master
building to discuss the details and paperwork. The contract would be for a full season. The
bathrooms are currently operational and card keys will be distributed at the beginning of the
season.
D'Alfonso reports that he has received several calls from recreational marina tenants concerned
about the change in contract language regarding dinghy storage. He feels that it is standard at
most marinas to allow dinghy storage in the water by the boat, and he proposes that the contract
language be changed to allow this. At the least, he feels that some provision is needed to allow
for dinghy storage other than on the boat. Suminsby expresses concern that not all slips will
allow for dinghy storage in the water and that the issue could be resolved if there is potential to
extend out the marina. Earl and Flaherty note that some marinas charge for dinghy storage.
D'Alfonso states that he has always stored his dinghy in the water but that they are usually
moved onto the docks so that they do not need to be cleaned. Suminsby suggests that if dinghy
storage in the water is not an issue, they could simply not enforce this. Earl will discuss this at
his meeting with Dever. Oosthoek asks that he clarify how much capacity is available for
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Harbor Management Authority
Minutes of March 15, 2017 Meeting
dinghies. McAleer asks if there is space available on the commercial side of the marina.
D'Alfonso and Earl agree that this may be workable. HMA will take up contract language
changes at the next meeting.
In terms of vacancy in the recreational marina and the space the fire boat is currently occupying,
Earl notes that there is room for improvement in how the waiting list is currently maintained.
D'Alfonso suggests tying floats to the moorings in the harbor. Neuman notes that moorings are
under the purview of the Harbor Master, not the HMA.
Suminsby motions that no changes are made to the winter rates. Seconded by Simon. All
approved, motion passes unanimously (9 -0).
Financials Report
Earl notes that under the HMA charter, they are responsible for approving all expenditures. He
suggests that all expenditures be approved in advance for any capital projects, and be reviewed
after the fact for operating expenses. Currently, financials relative to budget are reviewed in a
general sense. Earl aims for just a little more refinement to the oversight process. Discussion of
the best way to proceed will continue.
Earl reports that the budget is in good shape.
Neuman states that the contracts for slip holders should be enforceable. Some slip holders have
not paid 15% of the slip fee at the time of signing the contract, as they should. He suggests
sending out a letter to notify those delinquent in paying that they are not yet a slip holder until
this deposit has been paid, and they run the risk of losing their reservation. More information will
be available at the next meeting.
Grant Opportunities
Flaherty reports that there are currently no new grant opportunities in the works. She will look
into a DMF grant to fix up the public dock.
Projects
Congress Street:
Permission has been obtained from most abutters. A proposal has been received from Griffin for
site survey and permitting. Testing will be done at the Ventron site and the City is waiting until
all environmental concerns are satisfied. The committee will continue to discuss this project with
the Planning Department to keep up the momentum, and possibly offer alternatives to testing.
Obear Park:
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Harbor Management Authority
Minutes of March 15, 2017 Meeting
Flaherty reports that site survey and permitting proposal has been obtained from Bob Griffin.
Flaherty says they are still waiting on a landscaping proposal. The deadline for invoice
submission is August and the they cannot be dated past June 30. The hope is to have permitting
started by April 1 st.
Mural Proposal:
Rand states that she is in conversations with DOT and waiting on a start date.
Striper Blitz Fundraiser:
Earl reports that the group organizing this event is expanding the number of beneficiaries to
include the YMCA among others. They would like to serve beer after the fishing tournament and
will need insurance waivers and temporary permits from the City.
Pilings Project:
Earl mentions that they have just received an invoice from GZA for the permitting on the piling
project. Earl will work with the City's finance department to best classify in consulting, and
ensure that the money is in that account to pay the invoice. GZA has provided numbers to enact
Suminsby's idea of expanding the recreational marina by moving it out by 6 -8 feet into the
harbor. Earl and Suminsby will meet with Dever to discuss Dever's concerns about navigation in
the federal channel and the replacement of an electrical cable the runs along the floats, and will
report back at the next meeting
Coastal Resiliency Plan:
The next public meeting will be held on March 30, 6:30 pm at the Senior Center. The group is
looking to develop an informational card that students can give to parents. Flaherty asks if the
HMA wants to staff a table at the meeting. After a brief discussion, staffing a table appears
ambitious.
Adjournment
There being no further business before the Harbor Management Authority this evening,
Oosthoek makes a motion to adjourn. Suminsby seconds. Motion to adjourn approved
unanimously (10 -0).
The HMA Meeting was adjourned at 9:00 pm.
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