Jerrys59
01-08-2006, 05:18 AM
Boaters to stage mooring rally
By Brian DiTullio
Saturday, January 7, 2006 8:45 PM MST
Another issue, another rally.
Gregg Staples, a local resident, is spearheading a protest rally scheduled for around noon today in Bridgewater Channel to send a message to Mayor Harvey Jackson that local boaters do not want the narrow portions of the Channel closed to mooring and beaching.
We're getting a good response from everybody, said Staples. There's definitely going to be more than one boat down there.
Staples said his original idea was to just stage a one-man protest similar to what Brian Springberg did last month in front of City Hall. However, due to the response he has gotten since announcing it through an e-mail on Thursday, he said he expects there could be a lot of boats in the Channel on Sunday.
I'll be getting there around 10:30 a.m. and I'll be moored on the Agave Inn side near the restrooms, he said. We'll have a sign. We want to get down there and get some good visibility.
The idea to eliminate mooring and beaching in most of the manmade waterway first was proposed at the Jan. 3 work session after the Lake Havasu City Police Department gave a presentation about the challenges they face enforcing the law during the height of the summer boating season and holiday weekends in particular.
The LHCPD officials stated they only were seeking the elimination of alcohol consumption in the area due to arrest statistics that show most of the crime is alcohol-related.
Business owners in the Channel area expressed anger and frustration upon hearing about the possibility of moorings being eliminated and vowed to fight it.
An attempt to limit mooring and beaching in the Channel in May 2004 met stiff resistance, and some of the restrictions were lifted at City Council's direction.
Jackson, who contends that eliminating the rowdy atmosphere would attract more families to the area, said there still is plenty of public debate to be had on the subject, but that he felt there already was a consensus by a majority of City Council on the issue, based on what he heard at the Jan. 3 work session.
The question is, said Jackson on Thursday, should that area be for us and our community, or should we turn it over to the out-of-towners? I can't use the lake anymore and I sold my boat last fall because of the congestion.
Staples said Jackson's efforts in the Channel would have the opposite effect by denying families the use of the beaches from their boats.
Currently, it is up to the city manager to control the amount of mooring and beaching in the Channel.
Jackson has directed City Attorney Matt Podracky to draw up several ordinances on the issue for presentation at a future meeting to give more direction on the issue.
You may contact the reporter at ditullio@havasunews.com.
By Brian DiTullio
Saturday, January 7, 2006 8:45 PM MST
Another issue, another rally.
Gregg Staples, a local resident, is spearheading a protest rally scheduled for around noon today in Bridgewater Channel to send a message to Mayor Harvey Jackson that local boaters do not want the narrow portions of the Channel closed to mooring and beaching.
We're getting a good response from everybody, said Staples. There's definitely going to be more than one boat down there.
Staples said his original idea was to just stage a one-man protest similar to what Brian Springberg did last month in front of City Hall. However, due to the response he has gotten since announcing it through an e-mail on Thursday, he said he expects there could be a lot of boats in the Channel on Sunday.
I'll be getting there around 10:30 a.m. and I'll be moored on the Agave Inn side near the restrooms, he said. We'll have a sign. We want to get down there and get some good visibility.
The idea to eliminate mooring and beaching in most of the manmade waterway first was proposed at the Jan. 3 work session after the Lake Havasu City Police Department gave a presentation about the challenges they face enforcing the law during the height of the summer boating season and holiday weekends in particular.
The LHCPD officials stated they only were seeking the elimination of alcohol consumption in the area due to arrest statistics that show most of the crime is alcohol-related.
Business owners in the Channel area expressed anger and frustration upon hearing about the possibility of moorings being eliminated and vowed to fight it.
An attempt to limit mooring and beaching in the Channel in May 2004 met stiff resistance, and some of the restrictions were lifted at City Council's direction.
Jackson, who contends that eliminating the rowdy atmosphere would attract more families to the area, said there still is plenty of public debate to be had on the subject, but that he felt there already was a consensus by a majority of City Council on the issue, based on what he heard at the Jan. 3 work session.
The question is, said Jackson on Thursday, should that area be for us and our community, or should we turn it over to the out-of-towners? I can't use the lake anymore and I sold my boat last fall because of the congestion.
Staples said Jackson's efforts in the Channel would have the opposite effect by denying families the use of the beaches from their boats.
Currently, it is up to the city manager to control the amount of mooring and beaching in the Channel.
Jackson has directed City Attorney Matt Podracky to draw up several ordinances on the issue for presentation at a future meeting to give more direction on the issue.
You may contact the reporter at ditullio@havasunews.com.