[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

 

[SolarFlare]

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

 

[Gulf Coast Outfitters]

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

 

[SolarFlare]

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

 

[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

 

[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.

 

[SolarFlare]

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.

 

[SolarFlare]

1st, we appreciate your input and it is not our intent to place burden on anyone including ourselves. I too resent the extra fee concept in this tax environment that we find ourselves in. 2nd, please understand that the Marine committee members are appointed, but basciallywe are "unpaid" volunteers giving up our time to improve our Marine Resources! I am diehard nearly uncontrollableredfish fisherman, another is an inshoreCharter Captain, yet another is a Commercial Captian, etc!

We welcome ideas that will allow us to provide funding formore parking and more boat ramps so that as time passes and our children grow, they too can enjoy our waterways with limited restrictions.

In order to understand,we need to separate County, State, Federal. We can only be concernd about county funding, because IF a piece of property comes up for sale that can be useful forwaterway access, we need to be ready to act quickly; that requires money or an income stream to repay a bond. I have been working on this fornearly 3years. With the exception of John Broxson's (SRC Dist 5) generous contributuion of over $200K out of his rec funds to purchase landfor addtional parking @ theOriole Beach Ramp, rec funds are almost never used for boat ramp improvments; Kudos to John for thinking out of the box! (that project took me2 years of "never give up work"!)

The only money finding it's way back to us with direct accessfrom the various taxes you mentioned is the money from the Boater Registration Funds from the decals we purchase. We considered raising the decal price, but the 1st dollar or $1.50 goes to the Manatee Fund; no help there for us! If you raise it too high,statistics tell ussome boaters willregister their boats in the next County; no help there!

So the realquestions are;

1. <LI>Do we need more parking at peak times of the year</LI><LI>do we need more ramps, IE: deep water ramps</LI><LI>If you answer yes t either, how do we fund it??</LI>

If you got some ideas post them or come to the meetings, we'll take all the help we can get!

thnx for your comments.

BP

fishn4real (10/31/2007)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.

 

[PaleRed]

As an outsider looking into the situation I would like to say that a boat ramp fee can be good, but it can also be a burden. I live in Destin. If I want to fish a lot, it gets expensive. You can not launch a boat in destin for less than 10$, unless you know someone. That means that if I fish 3 days a week after work I'm paying over 100$ a month. Some people really can't afford that.

Not to mention that I have to weigh out if its worth going for an hour or two after workand paying the fee or taking the risk of getting towed or ticketed.

If there is a fee, there should be a yearly membership that is affordable, maybe even a yearly and a 3 month or 6 month membership.