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BHMA Minutes May 19, 2021 Harbor Management Authority Minutes of May 19, 2021 Meeting CITY OF BEVERLY PUBLIC MEETING MINUTES Board: Harbor Management Authority Date: May 19, 2021 Location: Virtual via Google Meet Members Present: Chair Paul Earl, Todd Callaghan, Larry Herman, Don Neuman, George Simon, David Suminsby, Estelle Rand, Todd Rotondo Members Absent: Vice Chair Emily Flaherty Others Present: Sean Ciancarelli (Marina Manager), Denise Deschamps Recorder: Brett Bauer Earl calls the meeting to order at 7:00 pm and roll call is taken. Approval of Minutes Callaghan motions to approve the April 21, 2021 minutes. Seconded by Herman. Neuman provides editorial changes. The motion is approved by roll call, 7-0, with one abstention. Financials Report and Review/Approval of FY22 budget Earl reports that the additional revenues from this fiscal year have brought the income to over $200k for the first time. In the FY22 budget, Earl learned that float cleaning by a diver is not recommended for the floats but this maintenance expense remains in the budget. Ayles has not been able to confirm exactly what the utilities charges are for so this amount remains unchanged for now but can be changed if it is determined that the HMA is paying utility expenses that they should not be. Earl tweaked the numbers on the projects a little but there is no change to the bottom line. Callaghan asks why utility expenses jumped up so much from last year. Neuman responds that last year's utility expenses had been grossly underestimated. Callaghan notes that they may expect the utilities to increase with the Falco pilot project, and he suggests keeping an eye out for grant opportunities from the state to reduce utility costs. Callaghan motions to approve the FY22 budget. Seconded by Rotondo. Discussion: Neuman asks if they should budget separately for the implementation of projects after the engineering and exploration is performed. Earl responds that there is sufficient room in the Capital Fund to cover this with plenty remaining. The motion is approved by roll call, 8-0 Customer Parkin Earl reports that the City Solicitor's office has said there are no ordinances regulating the parking area under the bridge. Bloom said he cannot allow parking on a construction site because of the liability. Dan McPherson spoke with Beverly Port Marina, and they are considering allowing some parking on their property. Earl has communicated to all other relevant city departments. Page Harbor Management Authority Minutes of May 19, 2021 Meeting Neuman asks if the city council could pass an ordinance about parking in the area under the bridge. He feels HMA and the City needs to provide some assurance to the recreational marina customers that parking will be available per their contract. Rotondo responds that an ordinance can take very long to pass, and they should wait to see what the new restaurant will bring in terms of available parking. Rand notes it may be possible to use the existing plan for neighborhood parking and apply it to the marina but feels there is probably not much appetite for a parking ordinance specific to the marina. Simon feels HMA and the City have some responsibility to address the issue for this summer, but that they can deal with potential future parking problems in the future. He also asks if there is any executive order power that can be used for this? Rand, Rotondo, and Earl respond no. Simon asks about a shuttle service to and from the MBTA garage. Rand asks if they could utilize relationships with CATA or the senior shuttle. Earl asks Simon to research shuttle service options. Rand asks if communications about customer parking will also be going to the Double Eagle. Ciancarelli responds that the Double Eagle has a slip at Hill's boat yard and has been allowed to have passengers to Baker's Island park at Hill's lot. Rotondo notes that there may be some question of jurisdiction (city or state?) for the parking area under the bridge. He adds that the porta potty was removed, creating two more parking spaces. Suminsby suggests the map on the flyer be zoomed-in to focus on just the immediate parking area and another zoomed-out map be added to show the location of the MBTA garage in relation to the marina. Neuman feels they should look at changing the contract language to not include parking but note that public parking is available. All agree that the communications show they are making an effort to address the parking issue. Callaghan suggests that option B be removed from the flyer until it is confirmed that the option can be used. Callaghan motions to approve the letters to marina customers to communicate parking options. Seconded by Rotondo. The motion is approved by roll call, 8-0 Falco Proiect Earl reports that Jim was down to see the installation of the gateway and that the network is fully installed. The next step is to install present sensors on the transient float that detects boats coming and going. The system should go live soon. One boater had expressed privacy concerns. Callaghan asks if users have agreed to some sort of privacy policy, and Earl responds yes. Deschamps asks if the HMA will reach out to businesses to create awareness of the app and how they will participate. Earl responds that he has spoken to Beverly Main Streets and other organizations. Businesses will need to pay a fee to market through the app, but this will be waived for this season. Kayak Racks Earl notes that some of the customers have been moving around with the new racks that are going in. Suminsby asks if they should consider an additional rack at Pleasant View Beach. Earl adds that there are possibilities for expansion at several locations. Suminsby motions to authorize Page Harbor Management Authority Minutes of May 19, 2021 Meeting two additional racks at locations to be determined. Seconded by Rand. Earl asks Suminsby and Callaghan to take the lead on this. The motion is approved by roll call, 8-0. Viewing Machines at Parks Suminsby reports they are waiting for approvals from the Conservation Commission and other city approvals. The location would be down the stairs from the sidewalk, at the second level of Independence Park where there is a small clearing free of obstructions from trees. Bass River Clean Up Earl reports that Flaherty is waiting to schedule a date with the mooring guy. Public Pier Planks Replacement Ciancarelli reports that the lumber has been ordered, but they are still waiting on delivery. They may need to get invoiced for the lumber before 7/1 for the grant. He notes they have also found a new lumber supplier at better prices. Commercial Hoist Construction Grant& Pier Appendage/Fishing Float EnOneerin2 Grant Earl reports these have been submitted. He discussed the need for a grant for the engineering on the pier appendage with the mayor, and conveyed that he is confident both grants can be submitted and will both be considered. Harbor Fest Earl has started checking with everyone that has participated in the past, such as vendors and entertainment, and has received positive responses about participating this year at Lynch Park. It would be the loth Annual Harbor Fest. The date would be Saturday, September 18th. Obear Park Coastal Resiliency Study Earl reports that the next public forum is Thursday, June 10. Bass River CAD cell Seaport Grant Earl reports that Foth was supposed to send requests for information several weeks ago. Neuman suspects they are waiting for equipment to map the ocean floor. NSIV Blue Initiative Callaghan spoke last week with Eric and Chris about what they need. He approached the conversation as a resource on regulatory processes, but also as a booster for Beverly. He is excited about the prospect of bringing scientists up to Beverly from places like Kendall Square and Somerville. Page Harbor Management Authority Minutes of May 19, 2021 Meeting Birarelli Public Access No updates to report. Neuman asks when is it appropriate to involve the City Solicitor's office. Rotondo will reach back out. Simon asks what Neuman sees as the best solution. Neuman responds that it would be for the city to purchase a right-of-way from Beverly Port Marina's waterfront public access to Water Street and bypass Birarelli Wharf. Hannah Replica Potential Opportunity Rotondo reports that Elliot Margolis has been exploring the idea of building a replica of the Hannah, and he has met with their state senator, the mayor, the North of Boston group, the Essex National Heritage Area, and Historic Beverly. Harold Burnham, the boat builder in Essex, has plans for building a Hannah replica and estimates the cost to be $1-2 million. Questions that remain include city vessel ownership, where it would be docked, would it be used as a Coast Guard vessel, and would it make trips to Marblehead (because of their historical connection to the Hannah). Rotondo was surprised the conversation went as far as it did, but a lot still remains unanswered. Some have asked if it could be unveiled at some sort of celebration for the 400th anniversary of Beverly, or the anniversary of the Battle of Nautilus. Simon asks if there is any opportunity to partner with Marblehead, and Earl responds that he has already reached out to the town manager. Rotondo notes that there was also discussion about recreating the Battle of Nautilus. Main Street 2030 Rotondo reports that this initiative has been suspended for some time. Fee to remain on Marina Waiting Lists Neuman notes that it has been his experience that even though a long waiting list exists, when an opening becomes available the names on the list may not respond or even be real persons. They are required by law to have a waiting list and that it be public. Neuman asks if it would be prudent to ensure the names on the list are real. Ciancarelli notes that he has been periodically cleaning up the list by calling and removing names if they are no longer interested. Taking a fee would create some amount of complications from an operational standpoint, and the waiting list seems to be working fine now. All agree that it is not a problem now. Simon asks if the fee would apply to the first year's slip fees, and Neuman responds yes. Earl will remove this from future agendas. Adiournment There being no further business before the Harbor Management Authority this evening, Callaghan makes a motion to adjourn. Herman seconds. Motion to adjourn approved by roll call (8-0). The HMA Meeting is adjourned at 9:10 pm. Page