Rich

In case you didn't know, There has been interest from the county marine advisory committee to start collecting fees for the use of the Navarre boat ramp .Keep in mind that funding is available for routine maintenance through boater registration fees.

:boo

Hook

Its on a valuable piece of property and they did rebuild it after the storm. A fee would be better than a condo ect built there.:doh

Bay Pirate

Before anyone gets going too hard about this,this subjectis in the discussion stage for several of the SRC busy boat ramps. There will be a public hearing BEFORE the porpopsal will even go to the commissioners for consideration!

The purpose of the fee discussion is not just for maintenance; the main purpose will be for land aquitsition to enlarge boat ramps, parking, or to add adeeper water boat launch if such a place can found at an affordable price.

If we do not come up with a funding source for such aquisitions,they will never happen,purchase opportunitieswill pass us by and access to the water will be diminshed. it's always good to get the facts 1st before picking which band wagon you want to jump on.

BP

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weatherman

Then increase my boat registration fee then, its a pain in the ass to pay a ramp fee, yeah, I know, even if there were a yearly fee to be paid but heck, its just another fee to keep up with.



The bad thing is though that the state gets cash from the Government through the Wallop-Breaux deal and another one that I forget the name of from the sales of pretty much everything to do with the outdoors to include marine fuel.



Its just another way to get a few more dollars from the middle class is all.

sosmarine

I am not for any increases or new fees, but if given a choiceI would rather have a county use fee for any ramp in the county and collected by the county. That way we control the money and don't have to rely on the state to give us our fair share. JMO

Bay Pirate

From an open minded point of view, what suggestions would you all have for us to raise money to buy land for parking or additonal ramps???

We take in approx $65K per year from Boater registration fees. Of course we canuse this money for artificial reefs, boater safety projects, and ramp maintenance. At this time we are able to keep up with these projects without dipping int our limited reserves.

So where do we find money for land aqusisition?

I/we are open to suggestions!!

BP

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Flatspro

Bay Pirate,

I feel that this is a good idea for the county to acquire more land for addn'l ramps. As for the fee I have no problems with that either as long as they offer a yearly pass like the ramps in GB. But you will still have the people that will try to beat the attendants there in the morning so that they can launch for free! That is where I feel the problem lies if you want to launch for free go to Texar! If you want to have closer access to the sound etc... then pay for a pass or use the honor box. I as well feel that violators of the honor boxes at pay ramps should pay a penalty (fine$$$$$) and put that money towards ramp upgrades and acqusitions. Just my opinion!

Chad

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Chad Skeeles
pensacolakayakcharters.com

Rich

BP

I'm wondering if we've exhausted our resources before implementing user end fees.

Here's a few ideas I've researched that might help our community.

Florida's Waterfront Partnership Program. The purpose if this program is specifically designed to help communities develop their waterfront properties.

CDBG. Community Development Block Grants. Every year, Congress appropriates monies to states for waterfront development.

NOAA runs two grant programs for public access to state shores. States can apply and receive fundingspecifically designated forland acquisitions. Overseen by the Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management through its Coastal Zone Management Program.

The EPA has a program called the Sustainable Development Challenge Grant Program. The grants range from $50,000 to $250,000. The money given through this programare designed for conservation and development of waterfront projects.

And finally, Non Profit and Private Partnership Programs. Together with local businesses, money can be raised to sponsor waterfront property development.

fishn4real

This amounts to "Double Taxation". We have already paid taxes to build and maintain the public parks, boat launces and ramps. We've paid these taxes through sales taxes when we purchased the boat-motor-trailer, boater registration fees, fishing license, and gasoline taxes.

Why do we just roll over and say, "OK" it's only $4 or $6 bucks each time I use it, it's worth it." But WE'VE ALREADY PAID FOR IT!!!!!:banghead:banghead:banghead

I think it's time this forum got vocal with our elected officials for them to take some responsibility for proper management. I'm going to ask Chris to install some links for Commissioners, Counselmen, Reps, Congressmen, and Gov.so that we can let them know firsthand how we feel about some of their crap.

Bay Pirate

Grants are great, and we have discussed that subject at length. To apply for a grant,land has to be identified and for sale, paperwork has to be filled out and then there is the approval process.

While all this goes on, the land gets sold and we miss the opportunity to purchase it. We need to have enough money in the kitty to either pay for it, or put a sizeable downpayment and then repay a bond from the income stream.

In other words we need to be able to act without constraints when the opportunity arises.

thanks for your comments.

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