A meeting without enough meat

Ahoy.

At the Harbor Commission meeting last Wednesday, I noticed less

than a dozen people in the audience and only half of them actually

stayed to the meeting’s end. I think that the audience participation

will increase now that the commissioners are finalizing the details

involved in establishing a new city commission and will start acting

on harbor issues.

Public comments are of course allowed for those who want to

express views on non-agenda items or as an opportunity to address the

commission. I used that time at Wednesday’s meeting to offer

suggestions for city-owned public docks located throughout the

harbor.

I submitted a two-page letter to help brief the commissioners on

my topics, and I recommend those addressing any council body provide

written information, especially if you have technical data or

specific information.

I requested the commissioners help boaters know where they are in

the harbor by placing location signs on each public dock, similar to

street signs. Also, I followed up with the additional idea of

increasing the 20-minute time limit to three hours for boaters to use

the public docks. Presently, there are no city public docks for a

boater to tie fast for more than 20 minutes in Newport Harbor.

Frequently we cruise to Rainbow Harbor in Long Beach because we know

there are public docks with sufficient time to dock for lunch. I

think increasing the time limit is an easy step to make so that

boaters can go ashore.

Also at this meeting, Capt. Marty Kasules, Newport Harbor Master,

gave an excellent overview of the harbor department with a

well-produced Power Point presentation showing some of the duties,

responsibilities and a few past clips of deputies in action.

Kasules and his Orange County Sheriff’s Harbor Patrol staff

oversee all of Orange County’s harbors and the waters off our

coastline, stretching ocean rescues as far south as Camp Pendleton.

The commissioners’ responses were positive to the presentation,

and I think Kasules showed the diversity of his department including

boat rescues, boat tows, divers, fire fighting, crime investigation,

mooring management and law enforcement.

One of Kasules’ major points is his handpicking of staff to meet

the qualifications and customer-orientated attitude for being a

harbor patrol deputy. I feel the effort he showed at the meeting will

help improve goodwill and increase the lines of communication between

the county and city on harbor issues and services.

Next on the agenda was Tony Melum, the city’s harbor resources

director, who gave well-prepared staff reports.

The first report was on the public dock for the Rhine Wharf

between the Cannery Restaurant and the Bluewater Grill. This year’s

city budget capital improvement projects include the dock

construction estimated from two dock building contractors. A marine

contractor made an interesting point that the Rhine Wharf is the only

suitable and safe location in the harbor for loading and unloading of

equipment and materials. An unfortunate derivative of increasing

property values is the displacement of on-the-water commercial

services such as dock builders, who are vital in this harbor but

cannot afford the exorbitant harbor property costs. Fortunately, the

preliminary plans show the dock’s location in the area where the

metered parking is on Lido Park Drive, thus leaving the wharf toward

the Cannery where the wharf’s post rails lift out still unobstructed.

I will conclude with an additional staff report concerning the

nonexistent dinghy storage for the mooring holders.

The Newport Mooring Assn. has issued a report addressing locations

and ideas for long-term dinghy storage. Did you know there are no

city facilities for someone with a boat on a mooring to leave their

dinghy shore-side for longer than 20 minutes?

* * *

I mentioned last week the Flight of Lasers that was held Sunday,

and how for the past two decades Art Gronsky has fired the starting

gun every year. However, for this year’s race I had to be up to the

challenge, filling in for Art who has another commitment.

Next week I will let you know how I followed in Art’s footsteps

and how the race was sailed.

Safe Voyages

* MIKE WHITEHEAD is the Pilot’s boating and harbor columnist.

Send him your harbor and marine-related thoughts and story

suggestions via e-mail to Mike@BoathouseTV.com or BoathouseTV.com.