nothin New Haven Independent | Thimble Island Ferry Gets Green Light

Thimble Island Ferry Gets Green Light

Mary Johnson Photo

A new Thimble Island Ferry that will shuttle residents and a few tag-on” passengers between the Stony Creek dock and the islands received the stamp of approval from the Board of Selectmen (BOS) last night. The board acted after the town counsel determined that the new ferry service does not fall under the town’s commercial boating ordinance and did not require a permit to operate. 

The ferry is the thread that stitches together the life of our community,” Charlie Goetsch, a New Haven attorney, told the BOS two weeks ago. Goetsch is the lead attorney on the project and the district’s first president.

Diana Stricker Photo

When he appeared again before the BOS last night, Goetsch (pictured) said he wanted to stress that the new Thimble Island Tax District is a non-profit entity that operates as a public service. The evolution of the ferry district was a journey for islanders to try to find a permanent and reliable ferry service, he said, a service that in one form or another, has been part of the Thimble Island landscape for more than a century.

Goetsch also said in an interview that the new district wants to take tag-on passengers” aboard, if there were empty seats. Their fees would help to defray costs. Goetch said he wanted the board of selectman’s blessing for this way to augment fees. In the end he got it.

In an interview, Goetsch told the Eagle that the ferry district’s recently acquired ferry will hold 14 passenger seats. He also announced that after a search, a new captain has been selected. He is Bill Smith and he lives in Branford. A Meet the Captain” event will be held on Saturday, March 25th at the Willoughby-Wallace Library in Stony Creek between 4:30 and 6:30 p.m. 

Ferry service begins with weekend travel in April and gradually increases to the point that by mid-June it will be operating from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily, Goetsch said. 

Mary Johnson Photo

The new ferry district proposed a variety of new revenue streams for its ferry service, including a subsidy to come from a tax assessed on all 78 Thimble Island property owners as well as fares ($5 each way) for those tag-on passengers” lucky enough to fill an empty seat. There are two-dozen inhabitable Thimble Islands.

The BOS acted last night after William H. Clendenen, Jr., the town counsel, submitted a formal legal opinion stating that the new Thimble Island ferry service does not fall under the town’s commercial boating ordinance, an ordinance that governs tour boats. Since it doesn’t fall under the ordinance, it was not required to get a permit. The Clendenen opinion supported Goetsch’s legal position. 

At the prior BOS meeting, John Opie, former Republican third selectman, had sought a public hearing and said he believed the new ferry operation required a permit under section 126 – 6 of the town code, which requires commercial passenger vessels” to apply for a permit to use the town dock. But Clendenen, who was asked by First Selectman Unk DaRos for a written opinion, disagreed. DaRos read his opinion aloud at the meeting.

Commercial,” wrote Clendenen, applies to ventures that have profit as a chief aim.” The new ferry district, he said, was created as part of a special tax district and is a public not-for-profit” entity. It operates under a specific grant of power by the State” designed to implement a public service.

Opie, who attended last night’s meeting, listened to the Clendenen opinion and then spoke to an audience of more than 150 people who were there for this hearing as well as one on a new public works building. Opie now said he agreed with the legal opinion. 

As one of the co-authors of this ordinance,” he said, referring to his days on the Representative Town Meeting, (RTM) I have to agree with what’s been said. As a ferry boat it is immune from this ordinance that requires a permit…” Then he went on to applaud the new group. They are taking care of their own needs and I really wish the new captain and owner of the new ferry boat a lot of luck. It’s a great service.”

Mary Johnson Photo

The Stony Creek ferry tax district, approved by the state legislature last year and signed into law by Governor Dannel Malloy, was created to assure residents of the Thimble Islands that they would have essential transportation between the Stony Creek dock and their homes on the islands.

Ferry problems developed several years ago, a combination of economics and a change in ferry ownership that left the islanders without reliable service. The islanders sought to find a permanent way to solve their common problem. Last July, at a special meeting, the Thimble Island residents, by a vote of 51 – 4 vote, approved the new tax district and with it, the new ferry service. 

At last night’s meeting, Chuck Pinckney, who has summered on Governor’s Island for 61 years, he said, praised Capt. Bob Milne, who provides cruises around the Thimbles, for stepping up to help the islanders with boat service when they were stranded. Then, said Bentley, With the town and the state’s help we formed a tax district to allow us to raise funds in order to underwrite what is to us public transportation.” He and others observed that not everyone who lived on the islands had a boat or was physically able to use one. 

The new tax district was formally adopted after State Reps. Lonnie Reed and Pat Widlitz and State Senator Ed Meyer, shepherded bills through the legislature. 

All 78 taxable properties, with residences on them, including the 10 Christine Svenningsen properties, are part of the tax district. The total value of the Thimble Island taxable assessed properties is nearly $54.9 million. Svenningsen, who does not use the ferry, paid her share of the taxes along with everyone else, but could not vote because her islands are owned by corporations. She is now the area’s major island owner. 

The Thimble Island ferry hearing took less than a half-hour to complete. Those wishing to speak were required to sign in. Speakers were given three-minute limits because this was a public hearing and a new time clock was in use. 

At the outset, the board of selectmen opened with its regular agenda before turning to the Thimble Island hearing. It sent an item to the RTM that it failed to get to because of what DaRos described as a chaotic BOS meeting two weeks ago. The item seeks creation of a special rent district for a trailer park. So far the BOS has not adopted formal rules to govern their regular meetings. 

###

Sign up for our morning newsletter

Don't want to miss a single Independent article? Sign up for our daily email newsletter! Click here for more info.


Post a Comment

Commenting has closed for this entry

Comments

Avatar for opie.john@yahoo.com