Shoreham Civic Association Town Meeting 3/18/09
There was a good vibe at the beginning of the meeting tonight. A lot of surf fishermen showed up, honest estimate between 60-70 people. It was a virtual who's who of the LI surf world, with MSA & LIBBA being heavily represented. Some famous surf guys, and some of us regular guys, all there to show the town we mean business and are sick and tired of the runaround and doubletalk.
Some of the people I recognized: Willie Young, Crazy Alberto Knie, Tom Farrell, RPsurf (Jon), Vito Orlando and his friends from the MSA, BrianBM, Frankiesurf, Eisey, Wiseguy, a lot of the guys from Noreast, and some guys from another site that I haven't seen in a long time. It was good to make a strong showing.
I asked Willie at the end how he thought it went, he said it was positive. Willie and all the rest of us were on our best behavior tonight. :laugh: Everyone was courteous and respectful, even when we didn't feel like it. :clapping::thumbsup: To all the guys who showed up in support. After going to so many meetings, I was getting a little discouraged that it seems progress is so slow.
Rather than give my regular report from the detailed notes I took, I'll try to be brief and outline the highlights. Sometiimes my reports are too frikkin long, even for me. :D
Basically, both candidates, and the Shoreham Civic Association, said "We understand your concerns, we understand the frustration you are going through, and we are actively working through this to resolve the issues"
Great, but I have heard that so many times before in different versions, I'm starting to believe these statements lack credibility.
This was prompted by a conversation I had on another site, with gunny and frankiesurf, where we talked about not accepting the truth unless you can verify it for yourself. So today before the meeting I did just that, went to both Riverhead and Shoreham beach, took pics, and compared the situations.
My conclusion: The Town council in Brookhaven is dragging its feet, and could do better. They're hiding behind the old law they dug up that designates that beach a bathing only beach.http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/...ons/icon13.gif
Eisey did some research and gave me a great handout on the Public Trust origins in LI. I'll post that in another thread. :clapping:
As for the candidates, it was the same Q&A you would see at any town meeting, and I asked myself how would either of these candidates do things any different?
The answer came when Mr Lesko pointed out that Mr Mazzei was part of the current town council that closed down Shoreham fishing to fishermen. So how can it be that Mr Maizey will now "work to open access" if he and other town officials unilaterally closed that place without any input from fiishermen at all?
There was further talk about the closed Shoreham plant and working with the LI power grid to "open access for fishermen through their property so they don't have to use the Shoreham beach bathing beach for access"
That's a great idea, but that could take years. Maybe not, but isn't it convenient that all of this is promised to take place AFTER the election, when something could have been done about it by approaching fishermen as soon as it was closed, and working together for a solution?
It's my gut feeling that none of the people up there who don't fish care about fishermen and our rights. The only reason they are even starting a dialogue is they see the numbers that are beginning to oppose this, and they're starting to worry. :2flip:
So they knoiw that now they have to deal with us one way or another, we're not going away.
I won't be voting inn that election because I don't live there. I didn't want to get into the pollitical game of endorsing any candidate. I liked some of the things each candidate said. As I get older, I tend to support more politically and fiscally conservative candidates like Mr Mazzei.
However, my personal opinion is that Mr Mazzei had his chance, along with the other members of that town council, and blew it. They only decided to deal with us because of the national press this is getting. So if I was voting, I would vote all the incumbents out, and vote for a new slate of people. I'm sick and tired of hearing the same patronizing answers.
I'll still go there and protest, but I wish I had somehing more positive to report. And if anyone doubts the power of the internet, I remember the Civic Association and the candidates saying several times that they read our "internet blogs" and are aware of the negative sentiment out there. Let's keep up the pressure on this, guys, we need more soldiers to win.
I had a good time meeting everyone. :HappyWave:
I'll post some pics tomorrow.
Stan from Rocky Point Fishing Stop spoke to Mazzei
All,
Stan from RPFS asked me to post the following. I am not telling anyone how to vote, just providing the following piece of information for you to digest.
Here is the email Stan sent me :
<< John,
I just got a call from Tim Mazzei in response to the email I sent him Saturday. I was very impressed with his demeanor, and his support for fisherman and the opening of beaches, for fishing, on the North Shore of Brookhaven. He told me I can hold him to his word on these issues if he gets elected. I never had a politician say that to me in the past 37 years while being involved with the town. Personally he seemed like a very regular, straight up person. I have yet to meet him, and unfortunately do not know that much about him, but he did seem very sincere. He, like I, own businesses and discussed other issues that we both stand on common ground with.
John, I know it is late, but I would appreciate if you could get this out to the various bloggs. Tomorrow we vote and our faction should hear this to help make their decision.
Stan >>
Shoreham Beaches will be open to fishermen this summer
Well people, some interesting news has developed.This is a further development of the meeting RPsurf was talking about. I just got off the phone with Stan Hentschel, owner of Rocky Point Fishing Stop, Rocky Point, NY.
He relayed the following promising news to me:
Since Mark Lesko won the election, he has been in touch with Stan, and Willy Young. They are slated to have a meeting very soon, where they will resolve the following -
1. Opening the beaches to fishermen and giving them back access.
2. Setting up a night permit system so guys can fish the beaches at night.
3. A committee of fishermen to have a dialogue with the town of Brookhaven to work out whether any other fishing spots are feasible.
Target date: the beginning of summer, though it could possibly happen before then. :thumbsup:
This is absolutely great news! Although the details still need to be hammered out, this is a lot better than things were during the old administration. Mr Lesko came in and started the ball rolling right away, true to his word. :clapping:
And for all the people out there who thought they couldn't make a difference, I would say to them look what happened here!!
A candidate who proved to be a false friend of fishermen was not voted in, and people realized it was time for a change.
Hopefully that area can get back on track in terms of revenue and growth. Without the fishermen and day trippers coming in, revenues were down. Coupled with the poor economy, many businesses, not just that of Stan's, are hanging by a thread.
I'm asking anyone who loves the north shore, on the next day you have free, to take a drive up to that area and see how beautiful it is.
Stop by Stan's shop and say hello. :HappyWave:
Here's some pics I took the last time I was there:
http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/...ead.php?t=3415
You can get a sense of how beautiful it is in these pics, but to really get a sense of that place's beauty you need to walk the sand with your own 2 feet, smell the smell of the salt air and hear the soothing sounds of the LI sound at your feet.
Or just take a drive with the family to walk on the beach, and buy a cup of coffee or a slice of pizza from a local business up there. If ya have a few extra dollars for a day out on the cheap, those businesses up there would appreciate seeing some new faces!! :)
I came into this after the other members started this, and wanted to thank everyone for their efforts and doing what little bit they could, from the letter writing or signing petitions to attending the meetings. :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
I got involved in this because I saw the writing on the wall for access in other places, like NJ, and wanted to learn as much as I can. I still believe the town violated the Public Trust issues at some point, but let's leave that alone for now.
Right now, I want to say:
Thanks everyone, one person (combined with others) really can make a difference!! :clapping::clapping:
[Credit for this developing info goes to FrankieSurf, a member here and also a VP for the New York region on StriperCoastSurfcasters.
Unlike me, :laugh: He's a quiet guy when you first meet him, but he's like a bulldog, leaves no stone unturned in seeking the truth, and he doesn't go for the political doublespeak that seems to be status quo for politics today. You can PM or e-mail Frankie anytime ya want and ask him about www.StriperCoastSurfcasters.org , the one club that every serious surfcaster should consider, a fishing club with an eye on the issues.:wow:]