Brightwaters raises canal slip fees as trustees approve repairs to lifted poles

The Village of Brightwaters voted to raise canal slip fees and authorize repairs after trustees described widespread winter damage to poles, bulkheads and pilings. The board approved increasing the resident slip fee to $55 per foot and the nonresident rate to $85 per foot and authorized hiring Fire Island Marine Services to reset 64 poles in the canal.

Mayor (speaker 3) framed the fee increase as a step toward making the Canal Enterprise Fund self-sustaining and to cover bond payments tied to recent canal work. The village’s finance staff (speaker 9) said there was about $193,500 in the canal fund but noted upcoming bond payments and expenses would largely consume that balance. Trustee McNulty (speaker 7) said much of the canal work this winter was unprecedented and crews had been mobilized to address snow and ice damage.

Trustees discussed alternatives including a larger fee increase (some trustees suggested $60 or $65) but voted for the modest increase to start. The board also reviewed bids for resetting poles; the mayor reported three bids and moved to award the work to the lowest bidder. The motion to hire Fire Island Marine Services for the pole reset was seconded and approved by voice vote.

"We got 3 prices on that... It's gonna cost us about 32 to $33,000 to reset all these poles," the mayor said when presenting the motion. Trustees said they hoped the fee change and concentrated canal fund would reduce the need to divert general-fund revenue to canal repairs in future years.

The board directed staff to publish the tentative budget and to continue monitoring canal expenses and bond schedules; no additional borrowing was authorized at the meeting.