West Alton Sandbar - Marine Patrol Trouble

[secondcurve]

I have a question for those on the board who want more marine patrol officers to "control" the go fast boaters, mooring balls to solve the rafting issues and more money spent to keep the lake water clean, and so forth. How are we to pay for these services?

[Skipper of the Sea Que]

This thread reminds me of a similar enforcement effort at Braun Bay during the 2000 season.

For those interested, here's a link to the thread starter and some interesting reading from the OLD forum archives:

MP Invades Braun Bay

At the time I had many of the same questions I see posted in the current thread. What does happen when I'm at anchor and someone makes a raft closer than 50 feet to my boat? We are both in violation.

As for mooring balls: Orange balls are supposed to be in the NRZ in Braun Bay to mark the 75 foot distance from shore you can anchor - not to use as a mooring but to mark the distance. One year they had signs out at Braun Bay with the NRZ rules. I believe the signs were placed 75 feet from shore. The rules for the WAM area sandbar are a little different.

Somewhere around here I have a few pictures of a Marine Patrol boat on routine patrol passing close to NRZ violators in Wentworth Cove - not interested in NRZ enforcement.

[Mee-n-Mac]

I also think public mooring balls in certain NRZs is an interesting idea. The question raised is cost and perhaps they could be combo mooring balls and parking (?mooring?) meters. I half jest but then again maybe there's an easy way to do this. If the balls can be made to pay for themselves (or nearly so) then the only question is whether people who use them would be willing to pay the price. So what's it cost to install and maintain a mooring field ? Instead of heavy duty mooring balls, could you have anchoring balls ? These wouldn't hold a boat in place but rather just indicate where a boat can anchor ... perhaps less $$ to install & maintain. With the success of such things at the Alton Sand Bar and Braun Bay then we could be well on the way to ring the Witches (and perhaps other places), converting navigation hazards in boating hot spots. Pepper could open a floating stand and then ... darn dropped my Prozac ... will get right back to you with more on this ...

[SIKSUKR]

Originally Posted by Mee-n-Mac

I also think public mooring balls in certain NRZs is an interesting idea. The question raised is cost and perhaps they could be combo mooring balls and parking (?mooring?) meters. I half jest but then again maybe there's an easy way to do this. If the balls can be made to pay for themselves (or nearly so) then the only question is whether people who use them would be willing to pay the price. So what's it cost to install and maintain a mooring field ? Instead of heavy duty mooring balls, could you have anchoring balls ? These wouldn't hold a boat in place but rather just indicate where a boat can anchor ... perhaps less $$ to install & maintain. With the success of such things at the Alton Sand Bar and Braun Bay then we could be well on the way to ring the Witches (and perhaps other places), converting navigation hazards in boating hot spots. Pepper could open a floating stand and then ... darn dropped my Prozac ... will get right back to you with more on this ...

That's not such a crazy idea M&M.When I sailed around Tortola in the BVI,A lot of the mooring balls were fee based.You would hook on to a ball and later on someone would come by to collect the $20 fee.I'm not sure anyone would pay this kind of fee on Winni for a few hours usage.Granted,these moorings were really used for overnite use.The next morning it was off to the next island and harbor to find a mooring ball and a fun night ashore.

[Lakewinniboater]

I have to admit.... this year, since we have bought our home and have a large beach.... I am not at any of the sandbars or coves very often.

HOWEVER, I really beieve that the use of resources on that type of issue is REDICULOUS!!

Go after the Captain Boneheads that almost run us over daily!

I was near the Varney's at about 7pm yesterday (A MONDAY NIGHT!), with no one around we were going fairly slow and captain bonehead in his overfilled bow rider came up quickly on my right. He LITERALLY almost ran up over us. HELLO, I had the right of way!!!

Put the MP (who i do have respect for.... but not spending so many resources in the sandbars) on point to find the idiots that break the 150 and right of way issues!!!!

[Rayhunt]

Its getting rediculous .. A MP boat comes over to the area were we are anchored and fires up his loud hailer which feeds back and splits everyones ears , to tell us that the island were anchored off is a loon sancuary and not to go ashore.. Well first of all the opposite side of this island is a LS not where we were , nor are there any loons or nest in this area..And noone was going ashore... But hey thanks for making all our day that much less enjoyable.. You mean to tell me there was nothing going on in any of the busy places like the wiers etc he had to venture out to this remote area to stir the pot ???

[Mee-n-Mac]

Originally Posted by SIKSUKR

That's not such a crazy idea M&M.When I sailed around Tortola in the BVI,A lot of the mooring balls were fee based.You would hook on to a ball and later on someone would come by to collect the $20 fee.I'm not sure anyone would pay this kind of fee on Winni for a few hours usage.Granted,these moorings were really used for overnite use.The next morning it was off to the next island and harbor to find a mooring ball and a fun night ashore.

And that's another way to go about it. Hire a college kid to be the "mooring master" and collect fees from all the boats that use the mooring balls. Give him/her a free mooring and float whilst on the job and you might get find some applicants Course this further drives up the cost of running the feild but maybe it's cheaper than meters (probably not but certainly more practical). In any case secondcurve, jrc and Airwaves make a good point in that unless there's a real problem that this solves or somehow makes $$ for the State, there won't be any interest. Certainly the boaters who presently use the sand bar or Braun Bay gain little and lose something. That's why I suggested other, presently unused, places become, as APS put it, DRZ's with mooring balls. Moving some people away from the home owners so both parties can, well, party to their own music (so to speak) while bringing in some $$ to the State (or at least allowing some Rep to drone about summer job creation) and increasing the boating things-to-do, places-to-go quotient of the lake (meet ya at DRZ2 for rock snorkeling) and then further add in that in that the MP won't have to play "Nanny" anymore .... the idea might have enough appeal to catch on. Well, maybe* Certainly there have got to be other places than just the Witches which could make viable mooring sites. Not every raft-up needs to be at a beach or be able to touch bottom with your toes.

So again what does it cost to "run" a mooring field and then what $$/hr would have to be charged to break even ? Would anyone pay this amount ?? Let's take a cut at it. I figure there's maybe 15 useable weekends in a season, add in a few holidays and you get 33 days where you'd charge for the mooring. Charge between the hours of 7am and 7pm and you've got 396 hrs/ball/season. Charge, I dunno, $2/hr and figure an 65% occupancy rate and you've got ~$500/ball/season. Amortize the initial cost of the mooring over ? 10 ? years and figure an average feild size of ? 20 ? balls (to spread the mooring master's pay across) and could it come close to working financially ? Would people pay more $/hr ?? Y'all tell me.


*pigs do fly, really, I've seen them. Just nowhere near as good as Warthogs or Falcons.

[Alton Bay Resident]

I'd glady pay for a day without being potentially hassled by the MP....

[Joanna16]

Originally Posted by Skipper of the Sea Que

This thread reminds me of a similar enforcement effort at Braun Bay during the 2000 season.

.

MP was in Braun Bay Saturday too - 'round 4:15 3 boats.
Are there real violations and water safety issues to be addressed?

[WINNOCTURN]

If this is all for Revenue Enhancement they are really missing the “boat”. All the need to do is permanently station these three boats at the new “NO WAKE ZONE” between Governors Island and Eagle Island. Yah, it has made a big difference so far this season, NOT!


WINNOCTURN