Brookhaven bans fishing at Shoreham Beach!

[Tom Farrell]

I can finally give all of you some very good news. I finally spoke to Supervisor Mark Lesko today. The Town of Brookhaven now has a new policy regarding fishing at Shoreham Beach. As of today Shoreham Beach has been added to Brookhaven’s Night Fishing Permit. Also fisherman will be required to obtain a fishing access sticker for Shoreham Beach for daytime use. This is not a fishing permit or license. It is to determine who is a resident or a non resident. The fishing access sticker will be free to all Town of Brookhaven residents. If you are a non resident you will be able to park in the lot for a fee of $20 and that parking fee will include the sticker. Walk on’s will be permitted for a fee of $10. You will be required to provide valid legal documentation to obtain the sticker. The normal hours of the beach will be extended as well. The beach will be open from 5am to 9pm daily. There will be employees in the booth during those hours. The official opening date for Shoreham Beach is 27 June 2009. However the night fishing permit is currently in effect.

Thank you to everyone who assisted in this effort. If it wasn’t for each and every one of you as individuals this may not have been possible. Each email, phone call, letter sent, petition signed carried a lot of weight in getting Shoreham Beach open to fisherman. This goes to show you what can be done when you are organized and when you stand up for your rights. I also need to thank all of the websites for all of there support. They made it much easier to mobilize everyone in our efforts of regaining access at the beach. Last but not least we also need to thank Supervisor Lesko for all of his support. He has clearly proven that he is a friend of the fisherman and looking out for the best interests of everyone involved. You can all be proud of this victory.

There will be more to follow in the near future. Once again thank you for all of your support.

Sincerely,

Tom Farrell
Secretary – New York Coalition for Recreational Fishing Inc.
weakfishin@yahoo.com


THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SUPPORT.

[BassBuddah]

to Willy Young, Tom, Darkskies, and all the other guys who lent a hand in this. Great news!



Get your tackle box ready
Town officials reach compromise over fishing at Shoreham Beach
BY PEGGY SPELLMAN HOEY |STAFF WRITER
Peter Blasl Photo Fishermen casting their lines at Cedar Beach and other areas along the North Shore will soon be allowed to return to Shoreham Beach, where fishing had been banned for the past year. Fishing line will soon be back in the Sound over at Shoreham Beach.

Town officials have reached a compromise on the issue of fishing at Shoreham Beach, a town-maintained beach that was closed to fishermen and boaters last year when a gate was installed at the front entrance following complaints by residents about trespassing.
The beach, which is next to the former Shoreham nuclear power plant, is accessible to the public by an access road located off North Country Road. Numerous complaints concerning the use of all-terrain vehicles, vagrancy, littering, and trespassing into backyards have been lodged with Suffolk police, increasing in direct relation to the arrival of the summer crowd at Shoreham Beach.

This caused officials last year to install a security gate and cameras to deter vehicles from entering the property after lifeguards close up for the night, as well as bilingual "no fishing" signs.

This raised the ire of members of several fishing advocacy organizations, who argued that their rights to walk below the mean high-water mark were violated, giving way to a series of debates on message boards and a petition to restore access to the site.

According to town officials, fishing and boating have never been allowed at the site, although the rule was never enforced.
Brookhaven Supervisor Mark Lesko, who recently met to discuss beach access issues with the New York State Coalition for Recreational Fishing -- the state's largest lobbying group that looks after the rights of recreational fishermen and their issues concerning access -- residents, the Long Island Power Authority and National Grid, said officials will allow fishing at the beach by the use of a fishing access sticker.

The stickers will be free and will be provided by the seasonal workers at the booth with proof of identification. Nonresidents who use the parking lot will be charged a $20 fee for parking, and nonresident walk-ons to the beach will have to pay a $10 fee.

The beach has also been added to the list of beaches that are covered by the night-fishing permit; however, nonresidents are not eligible, the supervisor said.

Officials have also extended the hours of operation, previously 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., to 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. There will be two seasonal employees on duty per day at the beach, and there will also be expanded enforcement efforts by park rangers and code enforcement.

Mr. Lesko commended everyone for coming to the table and arriving at a solution.

"All of this is to address the unique situation at Shoreham Beach, which was a serious issue for residents who live near the beach and also law enforcement," Mr. Lesko said. "This is specific to this beach," he added.

Coalition president William Young said members of the delegation, who met with Mr. Lesko, requested that both day and night fishing be restored to the area, and suggested the use of a card key reader, offering to help with its costs, so that the town could keep track of who was using the facility.

The coalition also requested a fishing advisory committee to discuss beach access issues across the township and especially on the North Shore, which has very few public access points between Mount Sinai and Wading River. Many of the public access roads, where fishermen used to park, have been whittled away over the years, dedicated to beach property owners' associations, he said.
Mr. Young said he was pleased with the agreement, but noted there are still other issues with fishing throughout the town.

"It's a general good-for-now agreement," he said.
Mr. Lesko said town officials will consider creation of a fishing advisory committee to address the issue of parking at other fishing areas throughout town and whether or not nonresidents should be included in night fishing permit.

The advisory committee would have to be set up by resolution of the Town Board, he said.

Second District Councilwoman Jane Bonner, who said officials have met extensively with all the stakeholders on the issue, said she was glad to see a resolution that would solve both the access issue and accountability. "I'm gratified," she said.

[nitestrikes]

Second District Councilwoman Jane Bonner, who said officials have met extensively with all the stakeholders on the issue, said she was glad to see a resolution that would solve both the access issue and accountability. "I'm gratified," she said.

She's gratified? Certified is more like it. Great job guys!

[plugginpete]

Way to go people!

[rockhopper]

Now you have to get Bonner out of office.

[Tom Farrell]

Very good news! Eddie Morris just called me and informed me that Shoreham Beach is now open to fishing. He was extremely sincere and apologized for all of the confusion. Shoreham Beach should be open tomorrow morning around 5am. The stickers are not ready yet so for the time being the park employees will be checking peoples identification and permitting access. There may be some kinks to work out but for the mean time lets enjoy the season.

[stripercrazy]

He was extremely sincere and apologized for all of the confusion. .

You would never have gotten anything resembling an apology if all those numbers of fishermen didn't get involved. Nice work Tom, NYCRF and everyone else.

[rpsurf5]

Now you have to get Bonner out of office.

Come election time we definitely need to remember who instituted this ban to begin with. Its clear now who is for the fisherman and who is against them.

I saw this sign at RPFS last weekend !

[crosseyedbass]

Can any tell me if Brookhave is still open to fishing or did it change again?