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Yacht club to get $26,000 for running marina |
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| Kincardine
has given initial approval to a 10-year agreement with the Kincardine
Yacht Club to operate and manage the Kincardine Harbour and Marina. In committee-of-the-whole Wednesday night (Feb. 17), recreation director Karen Kieffer brought forward a recommendation from recreation services to pay the yacht club $26,000 per year to run the marina. The set fee is different than previous years when the municipality and the yacht club divided the profits equally. The recreation committee came up with the $26,000 fee as an average of the profits over the past five years, said Kieffer. Councillor Kenneth Craig asked why the municipality is paying the yacht club to run the marina. “Usually, we let a tender, and the operator pays us,” he said. Chief administrative officer John deRosenroll said setting a fixed expense for operation of the marina is new for the municipality and is part of the requirements under the provincial Public Sector Accounting Board (PSAB) policy. The municipality will pay out the $26,000 from profits made at the marina, and the remainder will go toward fixing up the facility. “We’re protecting that asset in the long-term,” he said. Councillor Mike Leggett said the municipality could lease the operation of the marina, as Craig suggested, and put that income into reserve for use later on. Deputy mayor Laura Haight said there is more to this agreement than operation of the marina. “When the yacht club was formed and the harbour was built, capital from the club membership went into building the harbour. It was not a money-making enterprise. It was done as a sharing, reciprocal agreement.” She said that a fixed fee of $26,000 is better for both the club and the municipality, so they can set budgets based on that amount. Yacht club commodore Peter Owens noted that the club also keeps the Kincardine Lighthouse open and has been doing so for 30 years. “We set up the marine displays and pay for summer staff,” he said. “We lose about $7,000 per year keeping it open and heating the building. We’ve never asked for any money from the municipality; this is our way of contributing to the community. This is definitely a reciprocal agreement and it’s a win-win for both sides.” Craig noted there is nothing in the marina agreement about taking care of the lighthouse. Owens said that will come to council as a separate agreement. “Without this money for operating the marina, we can’t keep the lighthouse open,” he said.
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Councillor Marsha Leggett asked if the municipality was going to have
the same problem as last year when an individual insisted on docking
his boat at the north pier. “Yes, our friend of the north dock,” said Owens. “We have a consolidated fee bylaw that states seasonal boaters cannot use the north dock.” Mayor Larry Kraemer called a halt to further discussion of that issue because it is currently under litigation. “If something like that happens again, can the municipality be notified right away so we can deal with it?” asked Marsha Leggett. “Certainly,” said Kieffer. Council agreed, in principle, with the new harbour management agreement. It will go back to the recreation services committee for review, with a final recommendation to council in March. |
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