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Town considers new boat ramp fee for commercial marina uses

Southold Town Board

Southold Town Councilwoman Jill Doherty has suggested a new fee for commercial marine users who use the town’s boat ramps to launch boats for their customers, saying a $250 charge would help pay for upkeep and ticket enforcement.

During Tuesday’s meeting, Ms. Doherty said the town currently charges residents $10 for a parking sticker that allows them to use municipal lots at town beaches. However, the sticker currently doesn’t cover boat ramp usage, which Ms. Doherty suggested could be added to the existing sticker, so there would be no impact on residents.

Instead, she hopes to pull money from commercial uses at the boat ramps. “It’s really not going to change much of anything, but it gives us the revenue to do the small maintenance on these areas,” she said. In an interview Friday, Ms. Doherty clarified that baymen would not be affect by the proposed commercial fee.

Some board members questioned how the town would define commercial boat uses and said a public hearing would be needed to address that issue; however, the board expressed universal support for extending the sticker season from summer-only to year-round.

The Town Board will discuss the proposed change at a future public hearing.

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Update: This story has been updated to include additional comment from Ms. Doherty.