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2008 WATERWAYS BILLS/MOORING PERMIT RENEWALS
In accordance with Dartmouth Waterways By-Laws established in 2003, All fees and registration forms for MOORING PERMITS, BOAT WATERWAY USE PERMITS, MOORING WAITING LIST RENEWALS AND RESERVED DINGHY RACK PERMITS are DUE MARCH 31st. BILLS for these renewals WERE MAILED TO THE LAST KNOWN ADDRESS WE HAVE FOR EACH PERSON ON FEBRUARY 26, 2008. If you have not received your renewal information by March 3rd, contact the Harbormaster Office by email. RENEWALS MUST BE RECEIVED BY THE COLLECTOR BY MARCH 31st. A $50 LATE FEE IS APPLIED BY STATUTE AFTER MARCH 31. NO MOORING MAY BE RENEWED AFTER MAY 1st, AND UNPAID SITES MUST BE REASSIGNED.
Posted on 28 Feb 2008 by Harbormaster
Boat Excise Tax Bills Mailed
The Dartmouth Assessor has mailed to each qualifying boat-owner a 2008 Boat Excise Tax Bill. These excise tax bills are for the period of time from July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2008. If you had as vessel that was stored, moored or docked in Dartmouth as of, or after July 1, 2007 you should recieve a boat excise tax bill. If you have a mooring permit or rented a mooring or slip from a commercial mooring service in Dartmouth waters for 2007, you must pay excise tax to the Town of Dartmouth in order to continue that permit or rental in the future. Excise tax is calculated on a "fiscal year" basis. Bills for boat excise tax follow the season for which the tax is assessed. Boat excise tax is billed and collected separately from Mooring permit and vessel use fees which are due March 31st of each year. Under state and local regulations, the owner of any vessel that is delinquent in boat excise tax obligations may not be granted a mooring permit or any accommodations within Town waters. Any questions regarding boat excise taxes should be directed to the Town Assessor Office.
Posted on 15 Feb 2008 by Harbormaster
Public Hearing for Mooring and Waterways Fee Rates
The Dartmouth Waterways Management Commission held a public hearing on December 18, 2007 regarding the 2008 rates for all waterways and mooring related fees payable to the Waterways Enterprise Fund. A new rate schedule was adopted for boat-based waterways user fees. Starting in 2008, Residents will pay $2.60 per foot and Non-Residents will pay $6.20 per foot based upon the actual length overall for vessels subject to Dartmouth waterways use fees. Recreational mooring permits will require a $30 annual fee, while commercial mooring permits will be assessed a $60 annual fee.
Town Dinghy rack spaces will cost $40 for the 2008 boating season. Renewal forms will be mailed to the last address provided by the end of February, 2008. All payments are due by March 31st of 2008. Happy Holidays.
Posted on 24 Nov 2007 by Harbormaster
Army Corps of Engineers Public Notice Re: Concordia, Inc.
Concordia, Inc. with a principal place of business at 300 Gulf Road,
Dartmouth, MA has made application to the United States Army Corps of
Engineers (Corps) for the necessary federal permits to retain and
maintain 167 existing commercial (rental) moorings in the public waters
of Apponagansett Bay (Padanaram Harbor), Dartmouth, MA. Such commercial
permits are required for the seasonal rental of moorings by regulation.
The
US Army Corps of Engineers is seeking comments regarding the proposed
permits. Written comments are to be filed with the Corps before October
26, 2007. Comments from individuals or entities are used to determine
the need for a public hearing and also to determine the overall public
interest of the proposed activity. If there is no valid request for a
public hearing, the Corps will not consider such a hearing in this
process. Submitted written comments will nonetheless be considered with
or without a public hearing.
Statistically there are 1,194 mooring
sites permitted in all areas of Dartmouth waters. In the outer
Padanaram Harbor, south of the Padanaram Bridge, (the area where all
167 Concordia, Inc. moorings exist and are sought to be permitted)
there are 586 permitted mooring sites total. Of these 586 outer harbor
mooring sites, 409 sites are permitted annually for individual
(non-rental) use.
Please use the following link to view the Army
Corps public notice, File Number NAE2004-1077, as posted 25 September
2007 on their website:
http://www.nae.usace.army.mil/reg/pubnot2.aspYou may also directly download the PDF version of this Public Notice from this site:
http://www.nae.usace.army.mil/reg/1954_001.pdf
Posted on 27 Sep 2007 by Harbormaster
Dartmouth Channel Changes Affect Mooring Assignments
Dear Mooring Gear Owners,
The Dartmouth Harbormaster Office has received your mooring permit
relinquishment forms, and your requests to attempt to sell your mooring gear to
the next-assigned permit holder for your former site. This message is to
inform you of circumstances in Padanaram
Harbor that have delayed
to assignment of available mooring sites. In early 2006, the Harbormaster
was notified by the US Coast Guard (Group Woods Hole - Sector SE New England)
Aid to Navigation Team Chief that there were "mooring balls" within
the federally-designated navigation channel. At about this same time, the
two red nuns (10 & 12) were moved and repositioned by the USCG
significantly toward the west. The USCG intended to force the removal of
all mooring gear and attached vessels if the Town did not act.
I asked the USCG ATN Chief to specify, in writing, where the federal channel
began, where it ended, and what the width was determined to be. None of
these specifics could be determined from public information
available. He agreed to research and provide those answers before
any further action would be taken. Apparently the coordinates delineating
the extent of our federal channel could not readily be found by federal
authorities either, so discussions began again in May of 2007 with staff at the
Woods Hole ATN station and superiors at MSO Providence. The USCG sought
to set the Padanaram Channel at 75 yards width (225'). For comparison,
225 feet wide is approximately the average width of the Cape
Cod Canal. After further negotiations, it was agreed that
the federal authorities could live with a 50 yard wide (150') channel for most
of our little harbor, narrowing out of necessity at the Padanaram Bridge.
This was the narrowest channel they would accept. The location of
both red nun buoys, as well as the addition of a new green can #13 opposite the
South wharf was also negotiated with the USCG to achieve the maximum channel
depth existing in the harbor, while maintaining as practical an approach as
possible. Later in the 2007 boating season, the USCG ATN team again
visited Padanaram, and moved those government buoys into what is now believed
to be their final positions.
Although we have not yet received the final written coordinates for the channel
in writing from USCG, after two years of meetings, negotiations and
adjustments, I believe we finally have an understanding and agreement as to the
extent of the federal channel in Padanaram
Harbor. Obviously,
federally-designated navigation channels take priority over local regulation
and mooring placements. No mooring may interfere or impede navigation in
any way. The net result to the Dartmouth
boating community appears to be a loss of approximately 26 mooring sites due to
the "new" federal channel. That loss hurts, especially
in the face of nearly 300 candidates awaiting mooring permits. We
need to gain sites, not lose ground on the overall access issue.
Discussions at public meetings with the Dartmouth Waterways Commission led to
the reasonable conclusion that people with individual mooring permits being
"displaced" by virtue of relocation of the channel should be
accommodated elsewhere. These individuals with valid mooring permits will
be offered available sites ahead of anyone on the mooring waiting list to avoid
the unfair situation of new permits being issued to the wait list candidates,
while existing boaters are removed and forced to the end of the list through no
fault or action on their part. The Harbormaster Office will be
identifying and notifying each mooring permit holder affected by the channel change this fall and
winter. We will attempt to match as closely as possible those sites
available to those vessels displaced. All of this "shuffling"
is being done against the backdrop of an ever-increasing need to re-grid the
entire harbor for more efficient allocation of spaces. That enormous
entire re-grid project is looming in the near future, when that project policy
is set by the Dartmouth Waterways Management Commission.
This lengthy explanation is designed to explain what
appears to be a lack of movement of available sites to the Dartmouth Mooring
Waiting list. It is not for want of action on the part of this
office. The "behind-the-scenes" activity to make boating safer
and more accessible consumes a great amount of time and effort on out
part. While we are cognizant of the funds each mooring gear owner has
invested in their tackle, our over-riding focus must be upon the safe, fair and
equitable distribution of limited public space for moorings. Each mooring
gear owner maintains ownership of their personal property, which is the mooring
gear. It has been difficult to make clear the distinction between
ownership of that mooring gear, and the inability to claim any property or
ownership interest in the site which was formerly permitted for keeping of that
gear. We will make every effort to encourage the re-use or re-cycling of
existing mooring gear, however under local, state and federal laws, the
re-assignment of any mooring permit cannot be conditioned upon the purchase of
existing gear.
As always, each mooring gear owner is free to have the mooring service provider
of their choice remove their mooring tackle for future use, resale, scrap metal
value, or to simply stop the costs of required seasonal servicing. Many
municipalities actually do require that immediately upon termination of a
mooring permit, all personal (mooring) gear be removed to return the site to
its natural state. Those who have discontinued their mooring permit have
the option of waiting out this winter season for assignments to either
displaced permit holders or the waiting list, or having their gear removed
instead of winter servicing.
Any specific inquiries regarding this message should be directed to the
Harbormaster in writing only.
Posted on 27 Sep 2007 by Harbormaster
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Next Waterways Management Commission Meeting |
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Tuesday, May 13, 2008 at 7 p.m. at 12 Rogers Street, Dartmouth.
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