DANVERS HARBOR NEWS

Work to begin on million-dollar condos in Danversport

2008-07-01T12:17:00.002-04:00

Ethan Forman Staff writer
Salem News

Published: February 27, 2008 07:47 am

DANVERS — A luxury condo project in Danversport that's been stalled for two years showed its first sign of progress yesterday when a barge began dredging the waters where private slips will be built at the Riverview Marina.

The 13 contemporary waterfront townhouses at 56-58 River St. being developed by Harborview Properties Inc. will involve the construction of four separate buildings on 2 acres at the end of a peninsula in Danversport. They're priced at $850,000 to $1 million each.

The project, first pitched in 2004, could break ground in June, said Katharine Phillips, who is developing the condos along with her husband, Ronald.

Each condo will have its own private boat dock for owners only, Katharine Phillips said, reducing the number of slips at the former marina from 96 to 13. This should take some pressure off the at-times-congested Porter River during the boating season.

The Phillipses, who live next to the project at 57 River St., had planned to have the river around the slips dredged by now by piggybacking on the town and state's $1.7 million dredging project.

However, a mishap on Feb. 5 resulted in a barge dumping 2,000 cubic yards of river mud on the floor of Beverly Harbor, and the cleanup delayed the project.

In the meantime, the Phillipses managed to win permission from the state DEP and the Army Corps of Engineers for an extension to dredge no later than March 2, Katharine Phillips said.

Instead of Cashman, Burnham Associates of Salem will do the dredging, she said. Last year, Burnham had unsuccessfully protested the bid when Cashman was awarded the town's dredging project.

Burnham's dredging platform could be seen floating on the Porter River on Monday, Phillips said. This dredging project is much smaller than the town's and will involve scooping up 3,100 cubic yards of river bottom in loads of 600 cubic yards.

Unlike the dredging that wrapped up earlier this month, the Burnham crew will work three hours a day at the outgoing tide, Phillips said. The project should take about five days.

The Phillipses started permitting the condo project in September 2004, and it at first drew the ire of 50 neighbors opposed to traffic and the project's density at a Zoning Board of Appeals hearing. The Phillipses have since scaled back the original 24-unit, 84-slip concept.

The final plan, which was approved in April 2006, includes combining four lots into one, and it calls for continued public access to the river.

Katharine Phillips said that because it's taken so long to get the project off the ground, they'll have to appear before the Zoning Board on March 10 for a six-month extension of their variance.

Dredging mishap

During a dredging project in the Crane and Porter rivers, a worker on a barge in Beverly Harbor accidentally opened the doors under the barge and dumped 2,000 cubic yards of river muck into the harbor, Town Manager Wayne Marquis said.

Danvers, the Army Corps, the state Department of Environmental Protection and Beverly officials were all notified of the Feb. 5 spill, Marquis said.

It does not appear that Jay Cashman Inc., the dredging company, will face penalties for the mishap, DEP spokesman Joe Ferson said.

"They took additional time to scoop the material, and they will submit additional information on the pickup," Ferson said.

The project wrapped up Feb. 14, successfully removing 50,000 cubic yards of sediment from the rivers.

Chemical Safety Board ends its Danversport blast probe

2008-07-01T12:11:00.001-04:00

Ethan Forman Staff writer
Salem News

Published: May 01, 2008 05:45 am

DANVERS — The U.S. Chemical Safety Board plans a return trip to town in less than two weeks to give its final word on the cause of the ink and paint plant blast that rocked Danversport at 2:45 a.m. the day before Thanksgiving 2006.

The board is holding a public meeting at 6:30 p.m. on May 13 in the North Shore Ballroom of the Sheraton Ferncroft Resort. There, the board will present and vote on its final report on the CAI/Arnel explosion at 128R Water St., board spokeswoman Hillary Cohen said.

The Chemical Safety Board is an independent federal agency charged with investigating industrial chemical accidents.

The report "examines company work practices, state and local licensing and permitting procedures, and state and national fire codes for the safe handling and processing of flammable liquids," a press release said.

The Nov. 22 blast damaged 250 buildings and destroyed 19 others in the predominantly residential neighborhood. The explosion also damaged or destroyed 300 vehicles and 65 boats at a marina, according to a final report in March by the state fire marshal's office. While 20 people were injured, no one died in the explosion.

The fire marshal issued four citations to CAI Inc. and Arnel Co. Inc. for violations totaling $400 for each company.

The Chemical Safety Board's final report will hold significance for Danversport residents.

"I think it will definitely provide a measure of closure to people," said Susan Tropeano from the neighborhood association Safe Area for Everyone.

"The CSB has gone to great lengths to answer all of the questions the neighborhood has, and we expect to hear those answers at the meeting on May 13." She does not expect any surprises in the final report, and she says SAFE will probably hold a public meeting to update the neighborhood later this month.

The Chemical Safety Board said the blast was caused when a mixing tank with flammable heptane and alcohol solvents overheated. The tank, operated by ink maker CAI, released a vapor which filled the room and ignited. Investigators noted last year that the building's ventilation system was routinely shut off at night, allowing flammable vapors to build up.

If you go:

What: U.S. Chemical Safety Board public meeting
When: May 13, 6:30 to 9 p.m.
Where: Sheraton Ferncroft Resort, North Shore Ballroom, 50 Ferncroft Road, Danvers
Information: www.csb.gov

Masco senior embarks on harborside internship

2008-07-01T11:57:00.002-04:00

Kristina Bond, Correspondent
Salem News

BOXFORD — While other Masco seniors are spending their internships painting murals or student teaching alongside their former teachers, senior Ian Gelinas is boating around Danvers' waterways with Deputy Harbormaster Ron Skinner..

Gelinas, a resident of Boxford, has been working with Skinner to develop the skills necessary to be a harbormaster.

"My internship is designed to learn the duties of a harbormaster and.develop a general knowledge of the laws of navigation," Gelinas said.

Each day, Gelinas works on different aspects of the job. He is assigned tasks by both Skinner and Harbormaster Chris Sanborn.

"So far I have helped connect a water hose system by the docks, paint letter codes for boat placements in the harbor, made phone calls to boat owners, as well as.several other small projects," Gelinas said. "A typical day consists of.working with Mr. Skinner and monitoring the ramp at Pope's Landing."

Gelinas said the best part of his internship is being able to work by the ocean. Depending on the weather, Gelinas works from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day.

"He's doing a little bit of everything," Skinner said. "He's been keeping up with computer system entries by keeping track of registration numbers and updating contact information."

At the end of the internship, Gelinas will describe his experience at the school's Internship Exhibition.

"I plan to present the everyday responsibilities of managing a public access boat ramp and marina," Gelinas said.

After he graduates from Masconomet Regional High School with his classmates on June 6, Gelinas will be attending Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where he intends to major in business.

"For a kid like Ian, he'll look back on (his internship) as a learning experience," Skinner said. "Dealing with the public and an array of different types of people will be a good experience."

Kristina Bond is a student at Masconomet Regional High School.

This sound's no sewer: State, feds make local waters off-limits to boaters' dishonorable 'discharge'

2008-07-01T11:35:00.004-04:00

Tom Dalton
The Salem News

Published: June 26, 2008 12:41 am

SALEM — The blue waters of Salem Sound, which extend from Marblehead to Manchester-by-the-Sea, are the first stretch of North Shore waterfront to ban boaters from dumping sewage.

The Environmental Protection Agency announced yesterday that it has approved a request from Gov. Deval Patrick to declare the 54 square miles of Salem Sound a "no discharge" area.

"This really helps to make sure that this wonderful resource is protected for many years to come," Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll said yesterday during a public announcement at the city's ferry landing.

The ban on dumping even treated sewage from vessels is now law for the estimated 8,000 boaters who navigate off Salem, Marblehead, Danvers, Beverly and Manchester-by-the-Sea. Violators face fines of up to $2,000.

This is "another leap forward in cleaning up Massachusetts' coastal waters," said Stephen Perkins, an official with the New England office of the EPA.

Salem Sound Coastwatch, a Salem-based environmental group, was credited with playing a lead role in the no-discharge designation and with alerting officials to the extent of the problem. A report by the agency showed that 15 percent of boaters responding to a survey, or about 120 boat owners, admitted dumping waste.

"That was alarming," said Leslie-Ann McGee, director of the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management.

This new regulation will be enforced by local boards of health and harbormasters.

Driscoll announced yesterday that Dominion, the owners of Salem Harbor Station, donated $20,000 to help the city purchase a new pump-out boat to replace an old one.

"For the boating public, it means you have no reason not to comply," Driscoll said.

A Danvers officials said they will use $19,000 approved at Town Meeting and other funds to buy the town's first pump-out boat, which should arrive in September. Beverly, Marblehead and
Manchester have pump-out boats.

Several of the communities also have working pump-out facilities in docking areas.
"Our next job is to educate the boaters," Barbara Warren of Salem Sound Coastwatch said.

Salem Sound is the state's 10th no-discharge area.

Abandoned vessels bill poised to become law

2008-06-05T14:40:00.004-04:00

Kristen Grieco
The Gloucester Daily Times

Published: February 05, 2008 12:49 am

The lengthy legal process that marina owners are required to go through when they want to dispose of an abandoned vessel in their yard is about to get shorter, easier and cheaper.

A bill easing the disposal of abandoned vessels, sponsored by Rep. Anthony Verga, D-Gloucester, is slated to become law within the next week. The House of Representatives and Senate enacted the bill last Tuesday, and it has been sent to the desk of Gov. Deval Patrick for a signature.

Abandonment often occurs when the owner of a run-down vessel incurs a bill for storage that adds up to more than the boat’s worth. The vessel then takes up valuable real estate in the yard, which can cost the marina between $240 and $300 a month in rental fees.

“The thing is, that 50 years ago, maybe lots of boat yards had extra space where they could tuck a boat,” Peter Bent, owner of Brown’s Yacht Yard in Gloucester, said when the bill was proposed in November. “In today’s world with real estate and taxes, every square inch of land is valuable and that boat’s taking up valuable land. We turn people away for boat storage.”

The current process for disposing of a boat is mired in paperwork and legal fees. A marina operator is bound by law not to touch the boat until acquiring its title — which requires hiring a lawyer and filing a petition in Superior Court. The filing fee for a lawsuit is around $300 a boat, but Russ Vickers, owner of the Hawthorne Cove Marina in Salem, said that legal fees can top $1,500.

The lawsuits are handled in Superior Court, often moving slowly through the waterlogged case load in an overworked court.

With the new process, marina operators would be able to gain the title without a lawyer, simply by going through a notification process and a waiting period. If a dispute ensued between the vessel owner and the marina, it could be handled at the district court level, which often makes the process more expedient.

“Local boat yards will now be able to regain valuable rental space that they were otherwise denied,” Verga said in a prepared statement.

If the marina chose to sell the boat, any money it would make above costs and outstanding bills on the boat would be held for two years for the vessel’s owner to claim. After the holding period, the money would go into a state trust fund administered by the department of Conservation and Recreation to be used solely for removing abandoned vessels.

To deal with the current laws, many boat yard owners simply turn away vessels that are in bad shape or look as though they are prime for abandonment — a tactic that takes a brisk business that could deliver another boat to pay rent on the spot.

Dredging- Removal of Moorings and Floats

2007-09-05T14:05:00.000-04:00

August 27, 2007

To: Mooring Owners and members of the Crane River Marina

On Thursday, August 23, 2007 the Town of Danvers held an informational meeting for mooring owners and boat owners who use the Town’s Crane River Marina. All mooring owners and boat owners who use the Town’s Crane River Marina were informed of the meeting and we are sorry you were unable to attend.

At that meeting we went over the information that was in the meeting notice, a copy of which is included with this mailing, in more detail and answered any questions from the audience. We also want you to be able to ask us any questions that you might have about the dredging project. For that reason we are also including copies of the handouts that were distributed at the meeting with this mailing. These handouts will show you the areas of the Crane and Porter Rivers that we are going to be dredged, the areas that have been designated for the temporary storage of the private moorings and floats, and a list of local contractors that you may be interested in contacting to relocate your mooring and/or float.

It was also announced at the meeting that the Town will give a 5% discount towards next season’s rent to the private mooring owners and boaters who rent space at the Crane River Marina. This one time discount will be offered to those who are renting this year and are returning next season. It is being offered as an acknowledgement from the Town of Danvers that although the dredging will benefit all who use our rivers, it is also an inconvenience to those mooring owners and Town marina customers who will be affected by the dredge project.

The bids for this project will be opened on August 30, 2007 and we hope to select the contractor for the project soon afterward.

If you have any questions regarding this project or what you need to do to comply with the requirements of this project, please feel free to contact:

Susan Fletcher, Asst. Director Planning and Human Services (978) 777-0001 ext. 3027
Christopher Sanborn, Harbormaster (978) 762-0210

"No Dicharge Area" Proposed for Salem Sound

2007-02-23T10:58:00.000-05:00

The newly formed Salem Sound Working Group consists of harbormasters, health department staff, and representatives from marinas, yacht clubs, Salem Sound Coastwatch, Coast Guard Auxilliary, the Beverly Power Squadron, and Marblehead Sail and Power Squadron. The meetings are open to the public and if you would like to volunteer as a member, please contact Barbara Warren. The goals of this project are the following:
Increase Salem Sound boaters awareness of the existing pump-out services and accessibility of the facilities through targeted educational outreach,2. Increase visibility and usage of Salem Sound pump-out services and improve or add facilities, as need exists,
Prepare Salem Sound for designation as a No Discharge Area (NDA) before 2010.
This project will address EPA New England's goal to have all the New England coastline designated No Discharge Areas (NDA) by 2010.
At this time, only 440 miles of the 1,784 miles of the Massachusetts coastline have been designated "no discharge" and all are south of Boston. In contrast, all of Long Island Sound, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and Casco Bay, Maine are "no discharge zones". Cape Cod Bay is currently applying to become a NDA. Please support this effort to make Salem Sound a NDA.
Salem Sound Coastwatch

Attorney General Warns Consumers Against Buying Unlicensed Boat Insurance

2007-02-22T12:06:00.000-05:00

September 14, 2006
Attorney General Tom Reilly is warning boat owners against buying watercraft insurance from two companies not licensed to sell insurance in Massachusetts or any other state.
Insurance regulators in several states, including Florida, Louisiana, Alaska, Washington, Ohio, Oregon, Texas and Massachusetts, have issued cease and desist orders against North American Marine and International Insurance company of Panama City, Panama and the International Water Safety Foundation of Quebec, Canada to stop them from marketing illegal boat insurance.
Attorney General Reilly has also sued a Boston insurance agency that sold North American Marine and International Water Safety Foundations policies to area boat owners. Under Massachusetts law, insurance agents and brokers are liable for any consumer insurance claims when the agents sell consumers policies issued by unlicensed companies.
Massachusetts law requires insurance companies to be licensed in order to do business in the state. To become a licensed, insurance companies must first show that they have sufficient financial resources to pay consumer claims, that they are properly incorporated and that the company's insurance policies comply with state law.
Consumers who buy insurance from an unlicensed company may run into serious problems when they submit a claim. Despite faithfully paying premiums, consumers can face claim denials again and again.
Consumers can take steps to prevent becoming victims of unscrupulous insurance companies. Before buying a new policy from an insurance company, it is important to verify that the company is licensed in Massachusetts. To find out if a company is properly licensed, contact the Massachusetts Division of Insurance at 617-521-7777 and ask to speak to someone in the licensing section. Consumers should also be wary of insurance solicitations that come in the mail, by fax or on the Internet.
Consumers who have concerns about the legitimacy of an insurance company or need help with claims should contact the Attorney General toll free at 888-830-6277.

New Regulatory Buoys in Harbor

2006-04-27T15:51:00.000-04:00

The Harbormaster's Office has recently installed all new regulatory buoys throughout the harbor. These bouys have orange reflective tape and flashing LED lights to alert boaters navigating the river at night. Similiar to the old buoy's they read "Slow, No Wake" to inform boaters of the harbor's 5mph speed limit.

Please note, these buoys serve to notify boaters of the "No Wake Area" and should not be considered navigational markers.

Pope's Landing Boat Ramp Open

2006-04-27T11:57:00.000-04:00

After some unexpected delays, the boat ramp at Pope's Landing was officially opened on Wednesday, August 30th. On deck at the opening was Harbormaster Christopher Sanborn, River Committee chairwoman Aileen L'Abbe, State Rep. Ted Speliotis, Town Manager Wayne Marquis, TFord Vice President Jack Enos and from the State Public Access Board Doug Cameron and Bob Hollows.

The original ramp was first constructed in the late 1960's and at one time served more than 3,000 boaters annually. In recent years those numbers dwindled to less than 2,000, this as a result of large holes and cracks in the ramp caused by harsh New England winters and its steady use by boaters. Officials were forced to close the ramp two hours before and after low tide because boaters were damaging their trailers at the end of it as it would just drop off.

The new ramp has more than four feet of water at low tide and a propeller wash pad to prevent erosion of sediment at the very end. Additionally, it is about 5 ft. wider than the original with grooves in the concrete to give better traction to motor vehicles towing trailers.