FINAL
Present for the Park & Recreation Committee and attending the meeting were: Andy Goldman, Chairman, Jane Slater, Julie Flanders, Jim Malkin, Tim Carroll and Warren Doty (arrived 8:35 AM) and Chuck Hodgkinson. Also attending were Jesse Burton, Melanie Flanders, Tim Broderick, Lev Wlodyka, Jen Jamgochian and Casey Elliston.
The meeting came to order at 8:00 AM.
Lot 3A candidate 15 minute interviews starting @ 8:10 am. The Committee interviewed each of the applicants for Lot 3A in accordance with the following schedule. The key discussion points are also summarized below.
8:10: Casey Elliston: Mr. Elliston said he has been fishing his entire life and most recently is Lev Wlodyka’s first mate for off shore fishing. He also said he would be interested in sharing the lot with Lev. He added he does not have commercial licenses this year but, if awarded the lot he would commercially fish year-round for striped bass, scup, oysters and scallops. He would like to have electrical power to keep equipment charged i.e. radios. He would store gear, life rafts and survival suits in the shack.
8:20: Melanie Flanders: Ms. Flanders said this is her fourth season of cultivating oysters in Menemsha Pond. She added it takes several years to establish a crop and hopes to be able to sell her farmed oysters next year. She has current commercial oyster and scallop licenses and has sold oysters to Larsen’s and Red’s Best fish markets. The shack would store outboard engines, hydraulic buddies and tools and she thinks electrical power would be a significant plus and would be able to have it installed if need be.
8:40: Lev Wlodyka: Mr. Wlodyka read his letter dated November 23, 2016 outlining his plans for the lot. This letter was included with a previous application for a bulkhead lot. The Committee mentioned that Casey Elliston expressed interest in sharing the lot with him. Mr. Wlodyka said he would consider sharing the lot with Casey if he (Lev) retained a controlling 51 percent interest in Lot 3A. He added he would transfer some of the gear that is stored in his yard on Molly’s Way off Middle Line Road to this bulkhead lot. A future plan would be to open a legal scallop shucking facility on the lot which would require among other equipment hot water, stainless steel sinks and bleach to sanitize the facilities. He then explained the history of how the Town gave his father’s
bulkhead lot to the Harbormaster.
9:00: Jesse Burton: Mr. Burton said he has 16 oyster cages in Menemsha Pond but has not yet been able to sell any product. His concept for the lot would be to build a land-based upweller system and have an ice machine and walk-in cooler inside the shack. He would also store gear inside the shack and outside. The Committee asked how much mechanical noise would be produced by the upwellers. Mr. Burton said the upwellers would be outside tank(s) and approximately 9 ft. X 12 ft. He speculated the noise would not be louder than the A/C units on Larsen’s Fish Market. When asked he said he would be open to sharing the lot with someone else.
9:20: Tim Broderick: Mr. Broderick explained he would use the lot and dock space for his successful oyster farming business. He said while behind projections he sold 75,000 farm-raised oysters this year and he buys more seed each year. His goal is to grow to several 100,000 oysters/year. His business has a growing barge, drying barge and custom skiff. He would need space for a truck to back to the bulkhead for loading gear on and off his barges. The outside of the lot would be used to seasonally store seed when it arrives—as a staging area. He will make and repair cages inside the shack and have a small, backup ice machine for those times when the wholesaler has no ice. He provided an itemized repair list for the shack that he would follow with cost estimates.
He did not think he would be able to share the lot with another oyster farmer because they would both have the same work schedule throughout the year and make it a bit cramped.
After completing all interviews the Committee agreed that each applicant is committed to commercial fishing out of Menemsha. After much discussion of each applicant and a review of each written application a motion was made to award Lot 3A to Tim Broderick. The motion was seconded and unanimously approved with five in favor (Mr. Doty had to leave the meeting earlier).
Review 2019 lot renewal applications. The Committee reviewed each of the renewal applications from the current bulkhead lot tenants. The following decisions were made:
Scott McDowell, Wes Brighton Lot 1A: Do not send out the renewal lease until the 2018 catch report is received from Wes.
Betsy Larsen Lot 4A: All criteria are met. Send the 2019 lease.
Stanley Larsen Lot 2A: All criteria are met. Send the 2019 lease.
Karsten Larsen Lot 7A: Renewal application not received. Chuck H. will obtain this before the January 17, 2019 meeting.
Alec Gale; Menemsha Fish House Lot 5A: All criteria are met. Send the 2019 lease.
Matt Mayhew Lot 6A: Application received. Andy will contact Matt to discuss his long term plans.
Marshall Carroll Lot 9A: All criteria are met. Send the 2019 lease.
Review cost estimate to re-wire the shack on Lot 3A. Chuck H. provided an updated cost estimate to re-wire the shack on Lot 3A. After much discussion on whether or not the Town should rewire the shack on this lot a motion was made to only remove the wiring in the shack. The motion was seconded. In discussion there was debate on the scope of work that should be the town’s responsibility. The motion came to a vote and did not pass with two in favor and three opposed.
A second motion was made to have the Town be responsible for bringing power service to the building and install an electrical panel inside the shack that is up to code. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously with five in favor. The details on the specifics for this will be explored further with the current and new tenants. It was further agreed to not budget this expense in FY 2020 but rather, ask the Finance Committee to cover this expense with their reserve fund. If included in the budget and approved by voters the funds would not be available until July 1, 2019.
Time will be reserved for topics the Chair did not reasonably anticipate.
Chuck H. reviewed a draft FY 2020 budget of $200. A motion was made and seconded to approve the budget. In discussion it was agreed to not spend it all in one place. The motion came to a vote and passed unanimously with five in favor.
Administration:
The November 15, 2018 meeting minutes were reviewed and approved as presented by consensus.
With no further business to discuss, the meeting adjourned at 10:40 AM.
The next meeting will be Thursday, January 17, 2019 @ 8:00 AM.
Respectfully submitted, Chuck Hodgkinson, CAS
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