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No More Long Wharf Fueling, Board Okays Tent for Festival

By
Jackie Pape

Boats will no longer be able to obtain fuel on Long Wharf or at any other Sag Harbor Village facility, including its A-Dock, B-Dock, and Marine Park.

The decision was finalized at the Sag Harbor Village Board meeting on Tuesday, after Ken O’Donnell, a board member, presented a motion to stop the practice in an effort to maintain the quality of the surrounding water bodies.

The change had been initiated by Mr. O’Donnell and Bob Bori, the Sag Harbor Village harbormaster, following three fuel spills in July. Two of the spills were at the Sag Harbor Yacht Club; the source of the third is still unknown.

Mr. O’Donnell recapped Mr. Bori’s July report. Although last month’s spills were relatively small and contained, the idea of a bigger one, Mr. O’Donnell said, is unsettling.

“Regarding the concerns of the water quality and the possibility of a spill that could pollute our bay, I’d like to make the motion to stop the practice of allowing yachts to fuel on the Long Wharf,” Mr. O’Donnell said.

The entire board overwhelmingly agreed that the three small spills had brought up the possibility that there could easily be a larger one.

Mayor Sandra Schroeder was succinct. “It’s not worth it,” she said, adding, “We are out of the boat fueling business.”

In addition to Mr. Bori’s and Mr. O’Donnell’s concerns, Mr. Bori said there had been a number of complaints from the public, who expressed worry about the potential consequences of delivering diesel to the wharf.

“While the trucks that transport the diesel have a boom in case something happens, now we can be sure that the quality of our waters won’t be harmed because we allowed a spill to happen,” Mr. O’Donnell said after the meeting.  While fuel trucks, which typically transport diesel early in the morning, have booms in case of emergencies, Mr. Bori said, “The marinas are more apt to handle a spill. They have booms at boats at hand.”

The board agreed that from the financial viewpoint, the pros outweighed the cons. The village makes about $5,000 per summer from fuel. A likely prospect is that boats will get fuel at the Sag Harbor Yacht Club, but bigger yachts, which may not be able to tie up at local marinas, may have to travel to New London, Conn., or Newport, R.I., for fuel. “Across the board, we are not allowing fuel trucks to come in,” Mr. O’Donnell said.

While the decision about fueling passed seamlessly, the Sag Harbor American Music Festival’s request to erect a tent at Marine Park for its seventh annual festival there caused heated discussion.

The festival is set to take place from Sept. 21 to 24, at the Bay Street Theater on Thursday, the Old Whalers Church on Friday and Saturday, and on Sunday at Marine Park. While Sunday’s event has been in the village’s books, Kelly Dodds, the president of the festival, wants permission to erect a tent so it can go on in inclement weather.

Ms. Schroeder said the spikes that would be needed for a tent could harm the memorial park’s irrigation system. “It’s wrong,” she said. “I don’t think it’s the right purpose for a memorial park. . . . It’s supposed to be a passive park, people used to get yelled at for playing Dutch football.”

 Mr. O’Donnell took a different stand, saying, “I feel like Pandora’s box has been opened with the music and the tents. We’ve already done it.” James Larocca, a village board member who is a combat veteran, also chimed in. “Every one of us has a view, and I’m wondering if there isn’t some middle ground here,” he said. “If it’s  the physical impact of the tent, is there an alternative way to do it without penetrating the soil?”

After hearing the different opinions, Ms. Dodd said she would be happy to make adjustments. “We will work with the village to make sure we have the smallest impact,” she said. “I think part of the issue of using Marine Park is we need to secure the tent but if we know where the irrigation is then we can know for certain that we don’t disturb it.”

Although Mayor Schroeder did not change her opinion, the four other board members approved the request. “I know it’s something different, and there has never been a large tent at Marine Park before, but it’s something we’ve always envisioned, and we want to be able to put the festival on rain or shine,” Ms. Dodds said after the meeting. “I understand the mayor’s position; I’m just glad the others agreed to let us try it out.”

 

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