HomeMy WebLinkAbout019Al & Bev Johnson
P.O box 148
Washougal, WA 98671
March 21, 2012
David Wayne Johnson
Jefferson County Development Dept.
621 Sheridan Street
Port Townsend, WA 98368
Dear Sir,
Our family has used Pleasant Harbor marina as a home away from home since the
late 1970's. We have commuted 170 miles to a series of boats with 5 family generations.
We have supported the Jefferson County economy and paid taxes as a "slip owner".
We are now afraid that the proposed new development for shore side parking will
ruin our investment by limiting access. The logistics of crabbing, shrimping, clamming,
oystering, eating out, shopping, sight seeing, and boat camping with our family requires
better support than an electric shuttle to a remote parking area can supply.
The amount of "stuff' that goes back and forth could not be handled by a
passenger shuttle: Large traps for crab and shrimp. A 10 foot dingy, A 10 foot kayak, A
14 foot kayak, An 11 foot davit, A heavy outboard motor on its wheeled carrier, A
pressure washer on its own wheels. Heavy lead batteries.
The list goes on and on. Loading for an extended cruise in B.0 Canada takes
many trips all day long back and forth to the parking lot for clothes, provisions, and for
access.
All boaters have similar practical needs for access.
Vendors and service people working on boats in the marina go back and forth to
their van or truck in the parking lot with parts, tools, upholstered furniture, mattresses,
lumber, plywood sheets, huge sail bags, even ladders.
To make all this worse we occasionally arrive at hours when a shuttle operator
would not be on duty. We can arrive late by boat when tide or weather dictates.
Live- aboard boaters are encouraged for security purposes in marinas. They all
require a handy vehicle for trips to work, to shop, and even to store things in often times
the live-aboards will have a van or truck handy for storage of things that won't fit in the
boat.
Our investment in the covered moorage and the adjacent open slip would certainly
be depreciated even more than it is already. The marina appears half or more empty now
for various reasons. The marina less than 200 feet away has a waiting list. We certainly
hope you don't see fit to approve plans to take away the limited parking we now have.
Sincerely,
Al & Bev Johnson
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