A meeting of the Seascape Association Board was held on Sunday, December 2, 2018 at 1:00 pm to discuss two topics:
The use of the boat racks on B beach
The relocation of the A beach boardwalk.
Board members present at Tim’s home were Tim Gallagher, John Honey and Charlie Loguidice. Members who conferenced called in to the meeting were Peter Howard, Russ Hazelton, Jeanine Kelly, Michelle Sax, John Mannix and Ellen Clark. John Beigel was absent, however he submitted an email to Tim with his thoughts and recommendations. Greg Strakosch was absent, but he provided the board with detailed information on the process and the cost of the relocation of the boardwalk.
Use of the Boat Racks on B Beach
Situation: For many years there has been a boat rack on B beach for the storage of non-motor crafts. During the past summer the small boats have filled up the rack and spilled out over the beach, taking up space on the beach from beach goers.
Solution: The beach committee built a second rack; so all the boats could be stored on the racks and not on the sand. Four volunteers copied the design from the New Silver Beach Improvement Association and built the rack, which tripled the capacity to 40 spaces. The cost of the materials to build the rack was approximately $1200.
The beach committee suggested that there be rules governing the use of the racks for safety and order.
The board referred to the NSBIA rules governing the use of their boat racks during their discussion. Following detailed consideration and discussion of the use of the boat rack on B beach, the board decided to recommend the following suggestions.
Board Recommendation:
Restrict the use of the racks to paid association members only
Put up a sign defining the rules to use the rack
Remove all craft if not in compliance
Restrict boat storage to only paddle boards, canoes, kayaks, sailboats with removable masts, and rowboats/dinghies that can fit on the rack
Eliminate storage of all craft left on the beach and not on the rack
Require registration of the craft with the beach committee and assignment of a specific space on the rack
Require a coast guard sticker, provided by the beach committee, on all craft to identify the owner, which additionally will be marked with some sort of Seascape identification and a number specifying location on the rack.
There will be no fee charged at this time for the registration and use of the rack
Limit one space on the rack per household. Additional household slots will be permitted, if available.
Spaces are assigned annually on a first come, first served basis.
The Beach Committee will be in charge of the administration of the boat rack registration and assignments
Relocation of the Boardwalk on A Beach
Situation: At the annual meeting in June, a motion was passed for the board to investigate relocating the boardwalk on A beach from the left side of the association property (facing the water) to the middle of the property. The reason stated was that most people set their chairs up right at the end of the boardwalk and the thought was that if the boardwalk was in the middle of the property, beachgoers would disperse to both sides equally.
Solution: First we would have to get approval from the Falmouth Conservation Commission (FCC). This would entail developing a new site survey map and refilling it with the FCC. The last time we did this the cost was $3400, but Tim Gallagher did all the leg work and document preparation. $3400 is a minimum. The cost could be much higher.
Three companies were called for a quote and one was interested in the project, Sheridan Landscaping in Plymouth. Sheridan quoted approximately $10,000. This included a day of labor to remove the brush to create the new path, which requires a special machine to reduce the area impacted for conservation purposes. It would be a day each to disassemble and reassemble the boardwalk. It would take another day to clean up and restore the plantings. If we decided to replace the boardwalk it would cost more than this amount.
The overall project would cost at least $13,500 and could be significantly more depending on the conservation fees and if we decided to replace the boardwalk.
Board Recommendation:
Based on the information provided, the board decided to not recommend moving the A beach boardwalk, because it is not financially warranted. Regarding a safety consideration, the board members made a good point about the location of the bike rack on the left hand side of the parking lot near the boardwalk. This location is tucked into the corner of the lot away from the cars creating a safe area for the children to park their bikes and walk onto the boardwalk, away from the area of the lot where the cars are parked.
The meeting was adjourned at 2:10 pm.