| Public Harbor Access Plan
What
has been done so far?
Over
the last sveral years, the team at Bristol Marine has made
a number of significant improvements to the marina. Much time,
effort and money has been spent improving the facility and
the quality of the environment along the shore.
In
addition to the many local residents who have access to the
water through the marina, the facility is a huge asset to
the marine trade. Several area business use the facility to
commission and service boats the marina's convenient location.
What
is the plan?
Several
months have been spent carefully planning the design of an
improved facility with the help of numerous environmental
and engineering studies. The propsed marina will be a more
efficient and effective use of harbor space within the marina's
proposed perimeter. It will offer a net gain of 120 new slips
in Bristol Harbor for the public.
The
improved marina will include electric and water supply, a
pump-out station available to all Harbor boaters and a wave
attenuation system to reduce the wave effects, providing a
safe facility for the boats. These advances will also improve
the local economy by luring more customers for Bristol businesses,
creating new jobs.
Who
benefits?
Public
Access
- Access to the water will
be improved for boaters.
- At the marina, quahoggers,
kayakers, fishermen and swimmers will have expanded entry
points to the water.
- The
Town of Bristol maintains a waiting list of Bristol residents
wanting a slip or mooring in Bristol Harbor. The list count
is hundreds of people long. Many of these residents have
been waiting years for access to the harbor. The proposed
improvements will reduce the lengthy list.
Harbor
Sprawl
- Bristol
Harbor currently suffers from increasing mooring sprawl.
The improvement plan would be a more efficient use of the
area: 70 boats arranged in slips occupy the same area as
11 moored boats.
Environment
- The
previously poorly maintained and environmentally hazardous
property has been restored to a clean and productive facility.
- The
marina will be maintained in good condition, creating an
environmentally safe harbor.
- Additional
improvements such as the pump-out boat - available to all
Harbor boaters - and improved septic system backed up by
best management practices will benefit the entire harbor.
Economy
- Marina
improvements will allow more boaters access to the water.
This in turn will create opportunities for the local marine
trade to provide services.
- There
will be more opportunity for visitors to come to Bristol
Harbor to spend dollars in local businesses, without burdening
the local infrastructure and school systems.
- Increased
local boat trade will result in the creation of new skilled
jons.
What
is the permitting process for the improvements?
After
extensive environmental and engineering studies and expenditure
of considerable time and resources in planning, Bristol Marine
will be submitting its applications in late November.
Will
the addition of more boats cause environmental stress on Bristol
Harbor?
No.
In fact, Bristol Marine's plans to manage land-side surface
run-off water and a new septic system will actually improve
the quality of the water in the Harbor. On the water, the
proposed slips are much more environmentally friendly than
the existing mooring fields.
Unlike
moorings, slips are strictly regulated by stringent state-mandated
marina management requirements and other standards. They are
further subject to a natural self-policing community that
arises among fellow boaters. Slip systems are less impactful
than groups of individual moorings.
All
boaters at Bristol Marine use the marina pump-out for waste
disposal. Boaters who violate Bristol Marine's Clean Harbor
Policy lose their slips. Bristol Marine has a vital interest
Ò business-wise and personally -- in a clean and beautiful
harbor.
How
will the improvement plan affect automobile traffic
Independent
traffic studies show that the proposed use will have little
impact on vehicular traffic on local streets both within the
marina and nearby.
Will
there be enough parking on the Bristol Marine property to
handle the needs of the expanded facility?
Yes.
Even on the busiest days there will be excess parking capacity
for both the marina and the needs of the other businesses
in the facility. During the summer, boats will be removed
from the yard, leaving ample space.
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