Leveraged by Massachusetts’ Police Reform Act into what its personnel considers a crawl space between the rock of new budgetary constraints and the hard place of increasing demand for job-related services, the Marion Harbormaster Department has rolled out a proposal to create a new town Department of Natural Resources.
If approved by the Select Board, Marion’s DNR would be part of the town’s Police Department, explained Deputy Harbormaster/Shellfish Officer Adam Murphy to the Marine Resources Commission during the latter’s public meeting held Monday night at the Police Station.
“We’re proposing a separate union,” said Murphy. “We’re trying to avoid reducing the services. We feel the budget should reflect that. … If I’m going out on a patrol call or backing up the Police Department (under the proposed conditions), my budget isn’t only coming out of the Waterways Department.”
Because they were not part of the same collective-bargaining agreement, said Murphy, full-time Harbormaster Department personnel is required to put in more training and to perform all the duties of a police officer in Marion but does not receive the same benefits package, including retirement.
Murphy cited Weymouth, Falmouth, Bourne, Wareham and Yarmouth as municipalities that have instituted some form of a DNR to mitigate negative impact on their harbormaster departments.
Marion’s new department would not change in terms of optics with Harbormaster Isaac Perry acting as director, Murphy as deputy director/shellfish officer and Dave Wilson as assistant director and assistant shellfish officer. The addition would be the Animal Control officer (Susan Connor.)
“Sue is coming to the end of her tenure,” said Murphy. “We fully intend on this position to be a Natural Resources position and taking our boat guys from three to four. Between the three of us, we really don’t take vacations in the summer. With this position, it’s going to give us a little flexibility.”
Under a new DNR, Animal Control would increase from four to seven days a week, while other familiar programs, such as educational outreach, safety courses and inspections for hunting and safety would all continue and possibly expand. Murphy said the seasonal, part-time staff would not change.
“The things that Waterways pays for now would be the same. There’s nothing on there that they’re not doing now,” said MRC Chairman Vin Malkoski.
Murphy said Chief of Police Richard Nighelli would be reaching out to the MRC for feedback.
The MRC is supportive but urged Murphy to take it slow, as a public hearing on the matter is likely before the Select Board considers voting its approval.
“It’s not something that we can kick the can down the road,” said Murphy, who took the lead Monday night in the absence of Perry, who was listening remotely while recovering from a January 10 back surgery. Perry is expected back in April.
Meantime, Murphy shared a PowerPoint presentation on the department’s budget and four major projects reaching a critical stage, most notably the new Marine Center that was approved in Town Meeting. The other three: a replacement for the department’s aging patrol boat, seawall erosion and severe infrastructural decay at Old Landing.
To help mitigate the problem, Murphy recommended significant, across-the-board fee increases for users of Marion’s harbor.
Base charges for moorings will increase for Marion’s 290 commercial moorings from $180 to $250, not counting the per-foot increase from $5 to $8. The $70 base fee for recreational moorings (Marion has 828) would increase to $115, along with the same per-foot increase. Adding on the Transient fee increase, the total projected increase in Waterways Department revenues for FY24 is $320,280.
With between 1,300 and 1,400 total Waterways permits, Murphy told the MRC that merely by bringing its fees in line with similar Massachusetts harbor communities, such as Plymouth, Scituate, Dartmouth and Duxbury, the Harbormaster Department can make a dent in its budgetary challenge.
“We’re throwing at consumers an average of 50% increase. I don’t think it will warm their hearts,” said MRC member Michael Moore.
Murphy countered that there are 198 people on Marion’s waiting list. “One way or another, we have to generate revenues to pay for these things. … And it’s not just the building, we have a lot of things that we need to discuss,” he said.
Malkoski cautioned that the department secure assurance that fee increases will not wind up in another bucket.
“We have always worked to be as responsible as we can. … We’ve always been asked to increase fees and we asked, ‘What are these fees going to be used for?'” said Malkoski. “Can we do it all at once? Maybe not. Turning down the (Seaport Economic Council) is not really an alternative.”
In FY22, the Waterways Department generated $268,739, down $10,000 from FY21. Total FY22 revenues were $466,973.97 and total expenditures $456,228.63. Murphy reported that indirect costs are down 12% for FY22 to $182,178.63 from $206,190.33, but he is not sure what has changed.
“The ‘indirects’ are always the elephant in the room,” said Murphy. “We need to put away more than $10,000 a year.”
Malkoski emphasized that the harbor cannot serve as a profit center for the town. “It is illegal. The harbor does not belong to the town,” he said, noting the trend toward parking fees as a means to take control of income to the town.
The Select Board will vote on any measure to increase fees.
The new Marine Center is hanging in the balance after a recent meeting with architectural designer Catalyst revealed a $1,000,000 increase in projected construction cost. Compounded atop a $700,000 shortfall in total grant applications of $2,300,000 with the state’s Seaport Economic Council, the double whammy has left the town scrambling against the clock for a viable Plan B.
The SEC averages $1,000,000 in distributions, according to Murphy, noting that Marion received a greater-than-average amount of grant funding ($1,600,000) toward its new harbormaster headquarters. But he also noted that grant funding is available to support repair of the seawall and infrastructure at Old Landing. The deadline for the seawall-repair grant application is February 17.
Last estimated five years ago to be worth $650,000, it is anticipated a new patrol boat would cost between $850,000 and $1,000,000, based on a 90-day quote on a 10-year bond.
According to Murphy, Marion’s patrol boat is basically a recreational Boston Whaler. Now 17 years old, it shows cracks in the separation of the house and also under the rails as well as the transom.
The department figures the boat still has value if taken away from department rigors. Murphy readily admits that the boat is not a safety hazard at this point, but because it took two years to acquire a motor for another boat, it would be risky to continue with the patrol boat.
Having shown the MRC several popular models highlighting their capabilities, flaws and costs, Murphy said he figures Marion’s current patrol boat is still worth $80,000 to $100,000, “if we move on it sooner rather than later.”
It takes a year to acquire a boat, and given the process of achieving that authorization, Murphy considers it prudent to move now.
The MRC took volunteers to form subcommittees to tackle the subjects facing the Harbormaster Department, including the Marine Center, the patrol boat, the decaying seawall and the deterioration at Old Landing. MRC member Scott Cowell, who said during the meeting that the cables at Old Landing haven’t been changed in 50 years, will lead the subcommittee formed to study and make recommendations there.
As of January 18, Murphy and Perry have received their certificates of successful completion of the Municipal Police Training Committee Bridge Academy Training Program. Assistant Harbormaster Dave Wilson is ahead of schedule with his training, putting him on pace to complete the program by the time Perry returns to work.
The Marion Marine Resources Commission will hold a special meeting on Monday, February 6, at 7:00 pm.
Marion Marine Resources Commission
By Mick Colageo