The OYC Executive Board has been meeting regularly, via conference call, to discuss the City of Oswego's plans for the International Pier Marina.
What follows is the text of a letter which has been sent to the City of Oswego Planning Board as public comment for the Special Meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, April 22, 2020, via teleconference.
To participate in the April 22, 2020 6:30pm teleconference:
Phone Number: 1-408-418-9388
Access code: 792 167 193
Password: 13126
April 20, 2020
Mr. Richard Freeman
Chairman of the Oswego City Planning Board
rfpefreeman@msn.com
Public Comment to the April 22, 2020 Special Meeting of the Oswego City Planning Board
Dear Mr. Freeman,
Please accept this letter as public comment by concerned stakeholders to the Special Meeting of the Oswego City Planning Board on April 22, 2020 regarding the Site Plan Review & Approval (Case No, 20-66); to allow for repairs from 2017 Flood Damage under FEMA guidelines and also various long-term improvements as part of NYS REDI Funding. This letter sets forth necessary information for the Planning Board to render an informed decision, with the comments and concerns of the Executive Board of the Oswego Yacht Club (OYC), regarding the Case 20-66 Site Plan Review & Approval for repairs and improvements on the Oswego International Marina.
Foremost in this public comment, the 200+ members of the Oswego Yacht Club wish to wholeheartedly endorse, encourage and approve of the great work of the City of Oswego to improve the Oswego International Marina Pier. Oswego is blessed with a spectacular waterfront on beautiful Lake Ontario. Improvements to the International Marina Pier, by developing parkland and green space connected to Breitbeck Park, will attract many people who have never experienced the Oswego Waterfront. The integration of parkland into the existing marina facilities allow for many more to share the great lake marine environment. Coexisting parks and marinas have been developed throughout the Great Lakes and are central attractions from Toronto and Kingston, Ont. to Rochester, NY. People enjoying a bustling recreational marina from a beautiful park location is always a winning combination. As our historic waterfront is now experiencing a great revival, assuring that recreational boaters will have a safe, deep-water and functional marina is paramount for both local boaters and visiting boats from all points of the Great Lakes.
We are requesting the Planning Board take into consideration that the development of the International Marina Pier be inclusive of a fully functional marina that is well integrated into this park setting. These concerns may be premature if this Site Plan Review & Approval by the Planning Board is only preliminary, for site preparation, and can be remedied by subsequent change orders. If this is the case, be assured the OYC will work with the City to create a world class waterfront for the people of Oswego and the boating community. In the interest of clarity therefore, we wish to add further information for your consideration that the OYC and the Oswego boating community think is germane to the completed project.
As you are aware, the OYC currently has a long-term lease with the City of Oswego, including optional renewal through 2030. The lease spells out the use of the second and third floors, as well as ground level storage space of the Marina Building, along with dock access to 80 to 100 feet of the east side bulkhead between “D” dock with Junior Sailing storage shed and hoist (Section I (A)(B)(G), Sec. XIII(A), Mod. III). The Site Plan appears to contain omissions and provisions that would put the City in breach of this lease agreement. They are as follows:
1. The International Marina Site Plan, Case 20-66 states the “Proposed Principal Use: Marina”, but it appears incomplete, as it shows no Docks or Marina infrastructure as does the Wright’s Landing Site Plan 20-64, also before the Planning Board. There are no specific references that indicate how many docks would be installed or their location. Further infrastructure necessary for the successful operation of the marina, such as the pump out station, Junior sailing storage shed, boat hoist, and adequate and convenient parking are omitted. (see attached Aerial photograph of International Marina Pier in 2014).
2. The OYC lease (Section XIII(A), Mod. III) permits the OYC to install a utility dock on the east side of the pier utilizing 80 to 100 feet of bulkhead space. This dock has been installed adjacent to the hoist and provides the only access for small keelboats to utilize the Oswego Harbor. The hoist, Junior Sailing storage shed, and dock have been built, operated and maintained by OYC for the benefit of the local community and City of Oswego, which derives dock fees for reciprocal boats, (Section III, Mod. 1, Sec. XIV). It is the location for instruction and training of the Community Sailing Program and the site of the Oswego School District Sailing program, with dockage for maintenance, support and rescue boats and disabled craft. This dock has been the site of annual OYC sponsored regattas promoting recreational boating in Oswego and attracting hundreds of boaters to the Oswego Waterfront. There is no mention or illustration of this dock in the Case 20-66 Site Plan.
3. The City granted a 20-year lease to the OYC (2010-2030) for portions of the Marina building.
The narrative under International Phase 1 on the Site Plan Graphic (at page 22) indicates that full
demolition of the “Clubhouse” may be recommended with no indication that it would be rebuilt. This would put the City in breach of its Lease agreement with the OYC. In addition, the City, by Resolution #21 of 2014 (attached) authorized the OYC to build a deck on the north side of the building providing that the City shall reimburse OYC for costs of materials if the Lease is terminated.
4. The boat hoist installed on the east side of the pier is utilized for hoisting dry sailed boats into the water, engine repairs on large powerboats and dock maintenance by the City and OYC. This is covered by the Lease Agreement (Section XII) but is not included in the current iteration of Site Plan. Members of the OYC and other boaters pay the City for dry storage space for boats on the pier and the Lease Agreement (Section XII) provides for dry storage space to be provided to regatta participants. The City of Oswego also provides dry storage space on the pier for the Oswego School District Sail training boats. The current Site Plan does not allow for dry storage for these boats and has no trailered boat access to the hoist and training/regatta dock as required by the Lease Agreement (Section XII).
5. International Marina slip renters, including many OYC members, need vehicular access to the pier to bring equipment and supplies to and from their boats. Fishing and Charter boat captains who dock on the International Marina slips use the currently existing parking area to retrieve their catches of large fish and to access the Marina building. The Site Plan provides for limited parking at the south end of the pier. Section XVIII of the Lease Agreement authorizes the OYC members to park on the pier in conjunction with the public. Also, the Zoning Ordinance provides that a commercial building of the size of the Marina building include at least two parking spaces. These are needed by the OYC members for operating and managing the Club, including delivery and stocking of equipment and supplies.
6. The OYC Lease Agreement (Section I (F)) authorizes the OYC to utilize the strip of land located at the south end of the Marina for launching small boats. The Site Plan does not show any such area.
7. On March 24, 2020 the City provided a narrative to the Waterfront Commission with the approved FEMA scope of work (attached), that listed the International Marina Revitalization Project Tasks necessary to create a well-designed, parklike setting with a revitalized marina and Marina Clubhouse. As this narrative fully describes the parklike marina desired by the local boating community, the OYC respectfully requests that it be incorporated into the Site Plan before the Planning Board, with the addition of specific accommodations for the hoist, Junior Sailing storage shed, and dock with access and adequate and convenient parking described above.
For the reasons set forth above, the Oswego Yacht Club respectfully requests that the Planning Board require that the International Marina Site Plan Case 20-66 be modified to include the specific accommodations requested above or table this matter to a later date so that the issues set forth in this letter can be reviewed further and be mutually and amicably resolved. The Oswego Yacht Club strongly believes that working together with the City of Oswego will enhance the benefits of this wonderful public asset for all stakeholders and create a world class setting for the International Marina Pier on our waterfront serving the City of Oswego for decades to come.
Thank you for your consideration of these matters.
Phillip T. McBrearty,
Commodore, Oswego Yacht Club, On behalf of the Executive Board OYC
Attachments:
2010 Lease Agreement (Original with City Clerk)
2014 Modification to Lease Agreement (Original with City Clerk)
City of Oswego Resolution #21 of 2014 (Original with City Clerk)
International Marina Pier 2014 Aerial Photograph
Narrative to the Waterfront Commission, March 24, 2020
cc:
Donna Archer
Oswego City Zoning and Planning Board Coordinator
darcher@oswegony.org
Mayor William J. Barlow, Jr.
Oswego Common Council
Oswego Planning Board Members
Jeffrey Hinderliter, Oswego City Engineer
Randall Griffin, Oswego City Fire Chief
John T. Sullivan Jr. Chair Oswego Waterfront Commission
Oswego Waterfront Commission Members