Committee Members David Paulson, Oliver Arrett, Steve Pavek, Ed Towey, Joe Ladner, Tracy Gustafson, City Administrator Dana Young

Councilmembers Kim Crockett and Nancy Middleton were also in attendance.

Jerry Laughlin, City Council Liaison Jon Monson

The Committee approved the May 14, 2003 Boat Committee minutes on a motion by Joe Ladner,

seconded by Tracy Gustafson. Motion declared carried.

Dick Kreutter, 18310 Rutledge Road, stated he would like to comment on three issues that arose from the last Boat Committee meeting he attended on May 14^th. First, he stated that there is no earthly reason why we should be apprehensive about hitting boulders, rocks, cement chunks or anything else under the water while loading or unloading boats at the Carson’s Bay ramp. He stated that this material should be removed as soon as possible.

Second, he stated that he would like to rebut the comments that Mr. Skip Wyer, 18452 Heathcote Drive, made concerning a letter from Mr. Jim Friedlander, 4167 Heathcote Road, regarding the market value of boat slips. Mr. Kreutter stated that other city-owned facilities are no where near $3,500-$4,500 per year as was claimed and provided examples of the rates charged at city-owned facilities.

And third, he stated that abusive situations do exist in terms of boat usage and they should be thoroughly investigated and eliminated where possible.

Further discussion was held on the existence of rocks around the launch area. Dana Young stated to the best of his knowledge most of the rocks have been removed both from the launch area and from the main channel area under the bridge. He stated he would continue to review this area for rocks or other obstructions.

Pat McGoldrick, 19575 Chimo West, was present to discuss the new make-ready dock installed at Carson’s Bay launch. She stated the new make-ready dock is now 44 feet closer to her property and would like to see some changes made to lessen the impact on her property: She requested the following:

• Installation of a no wake sign on the bridge
• Installation of rip rap along the shoreline between the new dock to a distance of 30 feet into her property. She stated that because boat traffic is so much closer with the new location of the make-ready dock, boat wash would have an adverse impact on the shoreline.
• Installation of a no idling sign on the dock to cut down on the fumes from the boat engines parked at the dock.
• Replace the boulders that have fallen off the old Chimo wall caused by the vibration from the construction of the bridge.

Further discussion was held on the location of a no wake sign on the south side of the Bay. Ed Towey objected to relocating the no wake sign. He stated the growth of milfoil later in the summer will make it impossible to speed and the relocation of the sign is unnecessary.

Dave Paulson made a motion to install a no wake sign on the south side of the Bay and north of the bridge, to install signs on the bridge indicating the location of the main channel under Carson’s Bay Bridge, to install a no idling sign on the make-ready dock, and to instruct City Staff to investigate the cost of adding rip rap along the north half of the city-owned outlet and participating in the cost of adding rip rap to the south 30 feet of McGoldrick’s shoreline. Steve Pavek seconded. Ed Towey opposed. Motion declared carried.

A motion was made by Joe Ladner to request that Hennepin County designate all of Carson’s Bay as a no wake zone and to keep the existing no wake buoy in place. Seconded by David Paulson. Motion declared carried. Bob Voyles stated that he would call his contact person at Hennepin County to discuss this matter.

Jim Friedlander, 4167 Heathcote Road, was present to state that he felt the Committee needed to consider charging more for boat slips and sunseting the usage of the slips. He stated that slip costs are too low and mentioned that the Minnetonka Yacht Club charges $4,400 per year and the City of Minnetonka charges $2,800 per year. He stated that fees should be established which are a blend of both market rate and municipal rates. He stated that there also needs to be better movement on the waiting list. He stated that this could be accomplished by establishing a certain number of years that residents would be entitled to hold a dock space.

Dave Paulson stated the solution to this problem is difficult because by changing the current policies you are simply moving a resource from one resident to another without really solving the problem. He added that simply raising fees is not the answer. He stated that the community is equally divided on this issue between those who have played by the rules and have a boat slip and those who don’t.

Mr. Friedlander asked how many of the Committee members currently have a boat permit. Dave Paulson stated that all members with the exception of Tracy Gustafson have a permit. He added that the composition of the Committee is irrelevant since both sides are equally selfish.

Ed Towey inquired if Mr. Friedlander’s position could be summarized by stating that he believes the fees should be increased and that there should be sunset provisions in how long a resident is entitled to hold a permit. He asked Mr. Friedlander what he would propose to do with the additional revenue raised by the increased boat fees. Mr. Friedlander stated that the additional revenues could be used to improve the docks, provide extra patrolling on both Bays, and provide needed improvements to the City Parks.

Judd Peterson, 3985 St. Louis Avenue, was present to request that the Committee do a better job in establishing the true depreciation of the marina facilities and recommended the shifting of marina fees to the parks to let those who are not able to benefit from the marinas at least have the opportunity to benefit by improvements to the parks.

David Paulson stated that he and Steve Pavek have prepared a report on the status of the City’s fire lanes. He stated that there are currently eight boats stored on thirteen fire lanes – two on Water Street, four on Bay Street and two on Western Road. He stated that over time, there has been significant encroachment within a number of fire lanes. Mr. Paulson provided a brief overview on each of the fire lanes:

Cottagewood Road – This fire lane remains open. Although there is not enough width to support a dock or slide, the fire lane may be wide enough to support a canoe rack.

S. Jefferson Street – This fire lane has completely disappeared and appears to have been taken over by the adjacent properties. According to LMCD regulations, two or three boats could be stored at this location if boats had been stored on this property prior to 1979. If not, only one boat could probably fit in this lane. Off-street parking could be available near the tennis courts.

Water Street – The City use to lease eight boats at this location prior to 1978. Presently, only two boats are stored there now. In the past, off-street parking was also available in this fire lane. Mr. Paulson suggested this fire lane could also serve as a ramp for local residents.

Bay Street – Mr. Paulson stated that a permit parking only sign should be posted as there are currently two cars parked in this fire lane. He stated that there is room for four boats at this location and perhaps a ramp.

Rocky Beach – This fire lane currently serves as a community beach.

N. Jefferson – This fire lane has been completely absorbed by the neighboring properties.

Sandy Beach – This fire lane currently serves as a community beach.

Summerville – This fire lane has also been completely absorbed by the neighboring properties.

Western Road – There are currently two slides at this location. Mr. Paulson also stated that a local ramp could also be installed at this fire lane.

Linwood Road – This fire lane currently serves as a community beach.

The Committee recommended that City Staff research the historical use of each fire lane to determine if there had been any boat storage usage prior to 1979, evaluate the impact that the LMCD standards would have on the future use of the fire lanes and clarify the legal ramification of selling some of the fire lanes on a motion by Dave Paulson, seconded by Tracy Gustafson. Motion declared carried.

The Committee reviewed the layout of the proposed dock on St. Louis Bay that contained a total of 37 boat storage units – nine of which are slides and twenty-eight of which are slips. The Committee proposed two alternate designs for the new dock – one which had the slips at any angle to accommodate more boats and to provide greater maneuvering room and a second which proposed including more slides along the shoreline by eliminating four boat slips. The Committee requested that the alternate designs be presented at their next meeting.

Discussion was held on the effectiveness of the breakwater structure and the need to update shore space permit holders to on the proposed dock. The Committee felt that any shore space permit holder that had a boat exceeding 24’ should be to continue to store their boat on the new dock. Ed Towey stated that other than these grandfathered boats, we need to be consistent and keep the length restriction at 24 feet.

Further discussion was held on the possibility of gradually replacing the current docks at St. Louis Bay and Carson’s Bay with more permanent docks, reviewing a new style slide design currently in use at Excelsior, and whether there was sufficient parking to accommodate the new docks at St. Louis Bay.

Bob Voyles provided an analysis on the movement of individuals on the waiting list from the period 2001 through 2003. He asked each member to give his or her ideas on the future direction of the Committee.

Oliver Arrett suggested that the Committee consider constructing a dry storage facility to provide additional access to the lake.

David Paulson suggested that the City could hire kids to launch boats for Deephaven residents.

Ed Towey suggested that Carson’s Bay Launch be designated for Deephaven residents only.

Joe Ladner stated that it will be difficult to satisfy those on the waiting list and those who have already waited their turn and currently have a space. He suggested grandfathering those who have a space and make the changes that have been suggested. He added one problem that needs to be resolved is that realtors are misrepresenting the fact that there is dock space available for new residents.

Steve Pavek suggested hiring someone full time to monitor boat usage, implement the good ideas that have been suggested, and perhaps, hire a harbormaster to assist the Boat Committee.

Bob Voyles suggested an incentive program to encourage the public to turn in those individuals who are violating the ordinance.

Kim Crockett suggested imposing stricter penalties.

Ed Towey stated that the real problem is that we need to find 100 more spaces. He stated there will be continuous pressure from the public until we do. He suggested that we raise fees, not high enough to force someone off of a space but to allow us to upgrade the facilities. He also suggested that we look into constructing a star dock system to replace the existing buoy fields.

Steve Pavek suggested that we no longer allow canoes on slides. He stated that they belong on canoe racks and are taking up valuable space.

Tracy Gustafson suggested that we need to address public perception by raising rates to discourage people who are parking boats. She also recommended that we not only focus on improving the docks but also keep the launch area in good shape as well for those individuals who do not have a space. She suggested that we keep a log at the end of Carson’s and St. Louis Bay docks for people to sign when they are using their boats in order to keep track of usage.

David Paulson suggested having different colored parking permits for residents and non-residents.

Motion to adjourn by Oliver Arrett, seconded by Bob Voyles. Motion declared carried. The meeting adjourned at 9:57 p.m. The next meeting of the Boat Committee will be held on June 19^th at 7:00 p.m.