Hamilton Reef
03-09-2005, 11:23 AM
Daily boat launch fees to double this year
Wednesday, March 09, 2005, By Robert C. Burns, CHRONICLE STAFF WRITER
http://www.mlive.com/news/muchronicle/index.ssf?/base/news-6/11103831466200.xml
At $10 a throw, daily boat launch fees at Muskegon launch sites will be among the highest in West Michigan's lakefront communities this boating season.
The daily fees for use of the city's Muskegon Lake launches were doubled raised last year for the 2005 boating season to help cover annual operating costs paid out of the city's marina and launch ramp fund.
However, the hike in daily launch fees brought a quick response from tournament fishing organizations, many of whom come from outside the Muskegon area to compete in local tournaments.
"There is some concern that the increase may harm sponsored fishing tournaments which bring substantial economic benefit to the community," city Finance Director Tim Paul advised the city commission.
Paul proposed, and on Tuesday the commission enacted, a special tournament fishing category lowering the fee for tournament entrants back to $5 a day.
Besides raising more money for city boating facilities, city officials say the new $10 daily fee is aimed at encouraging boaters to opt for seasonal permits.
Muskegon's seasonal price did not go up this year. It remains $40 for residents, $55 for nonresidents.
The annual stickers are permanently affixed to boat trailers and are thus easier to administer and enforce than daily permits, city officials say.
The procedure for legally launching a boat on one of the city's ramps on a daily basis is so complicated it creates another incentive for buying a seasonal permit.
A boat owner is required to complete both sections of a form, giving their name and address, the vehicle's license number and the trailer's license number, place money in an envelope and stuff it in a collection box. The second half of the permit, with the date and time filled in, goes on the vehicle's dashboard.
Vice Mayor Bill Larson said he believes the fees are in line with the number and quality of the city's boat launch facilities.
The city has four boat launch sites on the south shore of Muskegon Lake. They are at Lakeshore Drive and Cottage Grove; at Lakeshore and McCracken Street; at Hartshorn Municipal Marina near Western Avenue and Division Street; and the Fisherman's Landing site near Ottawa Avenue and Giddings Street.
Montague's daily fee is tied with Muskegon's at $10, and like Muskegon's, does not differentiate between residents and nonresidents.
By contrast, Holland charges the lowest daily rate of $5, or $8 for nonresidents.
Grand Haven charges a daily rate of $7 for residents and nonresidents, and extracts the highest fees in the area for seasonal boaters -- $50 for residents and $60 for nonresidents.
Wednesday, March 09, 2005, By Robert C. Burns, CHRONICLE STAFF WRITER
http://www.mlive.com/news/muchronicle/index.ssf?/base/news-6/11103831466200.xml
At $10 a throw, daily boat launch fees at Muskegon launch sites will be among the highest in West Michigan's lakefront communities this boating season.
The daily fees for use of the city's Muskegon Lake launches were doubled raised last year for the 2005 boating season to help cover annual operating costs paid out of the city's marina and launch ramp fund.
However, the hike in daily launch fees brought a quick response from tournament fishing organizations, many of whom come from outside the Muskegon area to compete in local tournaments.
"There is some concern that the increase may harm sponsored fishing tournaments which bring substantial economic benefit to the community," city Finance Director Tim Paul advised the city commission.
Paul proposed, and on Tuesday the commission enacted, a special tournament fishing category lowering the fee for tournament entrants back to $5 a day.
Besides raising more money for city boating facilities, city officials say the new $10 daily fee is aimed at encouraging boaters to opt for seasonal permits.
Muskegon's seasonal price did not go up this year. It remains $40 for residents, $55 for nonresidents.
The annual stickers are permanently affixed to boat trailers and are thus easier to administer and enforce than daily permits, city officials say.
The procedure for legally launching a boat on one of the city's ramps on a daily basis is so complicated it creates another incentive for buying a seasonal permit.
A boat owner is required to complete both sections of a form, giving their name and address, the vehicle's license number and the trailer's license number, place money in an envelope and stuff it in a collection box. The second half of the permit, with the date and time filled in, goes on the vehicle's dashboard.
Vice Mayor Bill Larson said he believes the fees are in line with the number and quality of the city's boat launch facilities.
The city has four boat launch sites on the south shore of Muskegon Lake. They are at Lakeshore Drive and Cottage Grove; at Lakeshore and McCracken Street; at Hartshorn Municipal Marina near Western Avenue and Division Street; and the Fisherman's Landing site near Ottawa Avenue and Giddings Street.
Montague's daily fee is tied with Muskegon's at $10, and like Muskegon's, does not differentiate between residents and nonresidents.
By contrast, Holland charges the lowest daily rate of $5, or $8 for nonresidents.
Grand Haven charges a daily rate of $7 for residents and nonresidents, and extracts the highest fees in the area for seasonal boaters -- $50 for residents and $60 for nonresidents.