Former Marion Harbormaster Isaac Perry, now serving the Town of Mattapoisett, will be sought out by the Marion Marine Resources Commission for his help.
The dock is no longer in service at Old Landing after the last storm tore it away from the pilings. As of Monday, the Harbormaster Department was in the process of removing it from the seawall.
“That float is no longer able to be used,” said Marion Harbormaster Adam Murphy in his report to the Marion Marine Resources Commission on Monday night. He described a giant hole in the middle of the gangway, having been torn up by the cleats.
A repair business from Bellingham visited and determined it would cost the town $150 per square foot to replace the dock with a concrete float. The dock would cost $65,000 and the gangway another $13,000.
The idea would be to build two, 20-foot floats that will tie into the 30-foot float at the end. Deputy Harbormaster Dave Wilson estimated a $3,100 cost for the hardware.
“We’re going to have to ask for a transfer (of funds) … we’re going to have to have those in the water in April,” said Murphy. “We can build them in March and April in the parking lot. … as crazy as it sounds, … we’ll just have to borrow space.”
The boat ramp, he said, is fine, but the gangway is no good.
“We’ve been band-aiding up those gangways for a decade,” he said, noting they are full of salt. “The infrastructure … it’s time we took a good look at it and started budgeting things one thing at a time.”
Murphy called the insurance company but reported a lack of interest in supporting a claim, contending that flood damage was the cause. Murphy insists the damage was not from the flood but the wind. He said insurance adjusters will make a determination, but the burden falls on the town to demonstrate its claim for coverage.
“Call it another $80,000 hit to the Waterways (Account) if we have to replace it,” he said. “Even if we ordered one today or in a few months, we’re not going to see it until after the summer anyway … this is really problematic. … We have to do something, we can’t do nothing.”
This is where Perry would be of significant help in drawing up plans to build two floats for an in-house construction project, something common in the department back when the town owned property on Atlantis Drive and several, part-time workers were readily available for such projects.
Harbormaster Department member Andrew Miller has been working 40-hour weeks but will be attending the state police academy and will be unavailable for the entire 2024 boating season. Murphy hopes he can get interns from nearby Massachusetts Maritime Academy.
As its new Maritime Center is built over the next nine months at Island Wharf, the Harbormaster Department faces other major issues.
The department’s workboat lost its lower unit, and Murphy reported a repair estimate of $5,600 and said he is working with the insurance company on the matter.
Murphy credited the Marion Fire Department for offering use of its fire boat, especially as a 5:00 am call came in from a group of hunters whose boat had drifted away from them.
As for the department’s capital-projects outlook, grant funding will be researched, especially considering the Coast Guard’s pullback from round-the-clock policing of Cape Cod Canal.
Murphy said, under its new schedule, the Coast Guard station in the canal will operate 40 hours from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm.
“Cape Cod Canal, one of the most important waterways. We’re the gatekeepers of it,” said Murphy, noting that Marion responds to the worst calls and the majority of calls. “And now the Coast Guard is going to be on call. That’s a bad thing as far as the government stepping back, but … when we write that grant (application for the workboat) … basically we’re at the gate of that canal … that’s Homeland Security. We have a pretty good argument.”
Other capital costs going forward will include the three main floats in front of the department office at $6,000 or $7,000 each, a replacement of the shellfish up-weller at $30,000, ammunition and new dry suits that Murphy says have been reduced to powder.
“We’re still trying to do a lot of those things in-house,” he said, estimating it would cost a total of $250,000 to repair everything at Old Landing.
There was more interest expressed among the membership to raise fees, but Murphy cautioned against seeking more fee increases. He said he has a meeting with new Finance Director Heather O’Brien on Thursday, January 11, at 3:00 pm to discuss the Waterways Account.
MRC member Tad Wollenhaupt continues to seek clarity on how it gets decided what goes in and comes out of the Waterways Account. Referencing his upcoming meeting with O’Brien, Murphy noted other personnel changes in town offices that he hopes will help bring an end to some of the MRC’s frustration.
Murphy said the state’s Seaport Economic Council has done everything it can for the town in regards to the new headquarters under construction. He has been quite impressed with the work of Marion Building Commissioner Bob Grillo, who is acting as site manager for the project.
Murphy anticipates an article on Bird Island and the lighthouse on the warrant for the Annual Town Meeting.
The next meeting of the Marion Marine Resources Commission is scheduled for Monday, February 12, at 7:00 pm at the Police Station on Route 6.
Marion Marine Resources Commission
By Mick Colageo