Southwick OKs lake permit

fees

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

By MANON L. MIRABELLI

SOUTHWICK - A unanimous decision by the Board of Selectmen to impose lake usage fees will help fund a stronger police presence on Congamond Lake, keep patrol equipment updated and put control of the lakes in local hands.

Lake Management Committee Chairman Richard T. Grannells said about 450 homeowners, comprised roughly of 60 percent Southwick residents and about 40 percent Suffield, Conn., residents, now have the option of obtaining either a state license or local permit to use Congamond Lakes, which all fall within Massachusetts. The benefit of the local permit is that the fees go to the town instead of the state.

"It's one of those things where some are pleased and some aren't," he said. "We're giving people the option - this is the lesser of two evils."

According to state Department of Environmental Protection regulations, all water structures must be licensed with the state or permitted locally. The local permitting process, which has already received a preliminary nod from the state while the town awaits formal approval, is voluntary while a state license is mandatory.

By creating a local permit, Grannells noted, town officials have taken control of the lakes.

"This allows us to manage the lakes locally," he said. "We will have control of all fees."

In addition to giving the town local control over Congamond Lakes, the permit fees will allow the police department to enforce laws without having to call in the state environmental police, Grannells said.

Police Chief Mark J. Krynicki, who is also the harbor master, requested that the Board of Selectmen institute the fees to pay for additional lake patrols and to replace police boats.

"This will help with more patrols," Krynicki said last week during the Board of Selectmen meeting where the measure was approved.

"The boat needs to be replaced, and I got sticker shock when I priced them," he added.

The fee system would charge $10 per year for boats belonging to Southwick or Suffield residents; and $40 for non-residents. Dock fees would be $40 for an initial permit, and $20 for renewal. Enforcement has become a key issue for the Lake Management Committee amid complaints of disruptive, dangerous and often illegal activities, punctuated by the Sept. 6 boating accident in which a boat without lights, operating at night, struck an anchored vessel, leading to injuries to several people, including Selectman Nicholas Boldyga, owner of the boat that was struck.

Robert Danczak, 65, of 17 Oak St., was arraigned last month in Hampden Superior Court on charges of operating a vessel while under the influence of alcohol or drugs and causing serious bodily injury and two counts of assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon.