The Derby Board of Aldermen torpedoed a proposal last week that would have allowed canoes and kayaks in the waters of Witek Park in east Derby.
Four members of the Board of Aldermen voted to allow boats. Three voted against. However, the measure needed five votes to pass. Two Aldermen were absent from the meeting.
The measure’s defeat was surprising because it had been discussed on the subcommittee level since May. The Aldermen’s “operations & procedures” subcommittee voted to recommend it to the full Aldermen board July 12.
Meeting minutes from the subcommittee meeting do not indicate how individual members of the committee voted, only that the “motion carried.”
But at the full Board of Aldermen July 28 the idea hit rocks and sank.
First, during the “public portion” at the start of the Aldermen’s meeting, Academy Hill Road resident Kelly Morgan went through a list of concerns about the proposal — including the fact she knew nothing about the issue until it was up for vote.
(The New Haven Register published an article on the proposal in mid-June. )
“A lot of people I spoke to don’t know about it,” Morgan said.
She worried specifically about crowd control and potential damage to wildlife. She asked the Aldermen to table — that is, not act on the proposal — for another month.
When the time came to vote on the proposal, Alderwoman Barbara DeGennaro made the strongest statement against it, saying the “liability exposure outweighs any other factor.”Alderman Stephen Iacuone, part of the subcommittee that recommended the proposal, said it needed more work.
Alderman Thomas Donofrio wanted age restrictions put on people using the kayaks.
Alderman Art Gerckens defended the proposal, saying most of the concerns raised by his fellow Aldermen were either addressed in the proposal or already covered by state law.
Gerckens noted the subcommittee checked with a city insurance agent at the start of the summer, and that the proposal had been reviewed by both the city’s corporation counsel and the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.
“This should not be this complicated, in my opinion. We met for several months. We vetted it. We’ve got the semi-approval from the state. They’re just, DEEP, they’re just waiting for us to say it passed,” Gerckens said. “In their eyes, it’s fine.”
The Aldermen — particularly Iacuone — seemed willing to push the proposal back to a subcommittee for further review, but the Aldermen pushed ahead with a vote, which failed.
DeGennaro, Iacuone and Donofrio voted against the proposal.
Joseph DiMartino, Gerckens, Ron Sill and Peter Olenoski, Jr. voted for the proposal.
Aldermen Carmen DiCenso and Tony Staffieri were not in attendance.
In a blog post Aug. 1, Gerkens reiterated the concerns raised had already been addressed, and pointed out use of the park would be for Derby residents only.
