If you’re reading this, chances are pretty strong you’re someone who has enjoyed the waterways in and around Annapolis in some way. If you are, thank a port warden, because they probably have a hand in your particular experiences on the water. Not sure what or who a port warden is? Not sure what they do, exactly? Here’s the 411.
Q: What/who is a port warden?
A: In official language, per the City of Annapolis, the port wardens are, “Five individuals who have a demonstrated interest in and knowledge of responsibilities of port wardens.” Their responsibilities include: “To regulate the placement, erection, and construction of structures in the water, to review permits for construction of marinas and wharves, to regulate the use of mooring buoys, and generally to oversee matters related to the use of waterways.” Appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the aldermen, their term lasts for three years.
The current members include a water taxi driver, a boat builder, a retired Navy serviceman, and a retired federal government economist. Gene Godley, who has been a port warden for 20 years and the group’s chair for 12, says that although it’s a lay group, the members take their jobs very seriously. It’s important for them to, “make firm decisions,” Godley says. “It’s important for precedent to exist.”
Ok, well, what’s their purpose?
Basically, the what, where, when, why, and how of this local slice of the Chesapeake is their business and their duty. That’s a lot of responsibility for a lay group. These guys love the water. While they are mindful of every kayaker and megayachter, their mission and passion is to protect the resource to maximize an existing balance between the wants and needs of many. As Godley says, “Things need to be done carefully when water is given away.”
What are some examples of port warden work?
Their work is expansive! A visit to a port wardens meeting at City Hall in Annapolis yielded the following jam-packed agenda: a proposed vinyl bulkhead for a residence (the port wardens asked why it was necessary), a proposed personal boat lift, and a proposed pier/lift for a marine construction company.
The next item on the agenda, the City Dock Bulkhead Replacement Project, deserves a bit more space. The City of Annapolis Department of Public Works, together with the Annapolis Harbor Master, had drawn up plans to increase the size of slips to accommodate larger vessels visiting Ego Alley and Annapolis. The wardens understandably had concerns over navigable space for all boats in Ego Alley and rising water levels. After several rounds of revisions, the port wardens approved the department’s plan.
As the harbormaster commented, it is a “balance of a lot of issues”; the Boat Shows and historic preservation, just to name several, all having demands on the same small space. “It was a quid pro quo,” said one port warden of the accepted revisions and plans. “They got what they wanted, and we got what we wanted.” And that’s essentially the spirit and mission of the group: to find balance and compromise in the name of preserving a body of water that’s a resource, a home, an attraction, and a way of life.
Sounds good. But what if none of that directly affects me?
Port wardens do the dirty work; they consider all the things that many of us who enjoy the water take for granted. The group clearly has a love affair with the water and her best interest as well as the city of Annapolis. So, next time you find yourself checking out buoy placement, a bright and shiny new lift as you paddleboard down Spa Creek, or any other number of the seemingly small technical details of the waterway, send thanks out to the hard working body of Annapolis Port wardens for protecting and honoring the resource and your experience on it.
Learn more at annapolis.gov and click to Port Wardens.
by Laura Boycourt
Friday, January 8, 2016 - 09:00
What They Do and Why You Should Care
If you’re reading this, chances are pretty strong you’re someone who has enjoyed the waterways in and around Annapolis in some way. If you are, thank a port warden, because they probably have a hand in your particular experiences on the water. Not sure what or who a port warden is? Not sure what they do, exactly? Here’s the 411.
Q: What/who is a port warden?
A: In official language, per the City of Annapolis, the port wardens are, “Five individuals who have a demonstrated interest in and knowledge of responsibilities of port wardens.” Their responsibilities include: “To regulate the placement, erection, and construction of structures in the water, to review permits for construction of marinas and wharves, to regulate the use of mooring buoys, and generally to oversee matters related to the use of waterways.” Appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the aldermen, their term lasts for three years.
The current members include a water taxi driver, a boat builder, a retired Navy serviceman, and a retired federal government economist. Gene Godley, who has been a port warden for 20 years and the group’s chair for 12, says that although it’s a lay group, the members take their jobs very seriously. It’s important for them to, “make firm decisions,” Godley says. “It’s important for precedent to exist.”
Ok, well, what’s their purpose?
Basically, the what, where, when, why, and how of this local slice of the Chesapeake is their business and their duty. That’s a lot of responsibility for a lay group. These guys love the water. While they are mindful of every kayaker and megayachter, their mission and passion is to protect the resource to maximize an existing balance between the wants and needs of many. As Godley says, “Things need to be done carefully when water is given away.”
What are some examples of port warden work?
Their work is expansive! A visit to a port wardens meeting at City Hall in Annapolis yielded the following jam-packed agenda: a proposed vinyl bulkhead for a residence (the port wardens asked why it was necessary), a proposed personal boat lift, and a proposed pier/lift for a marine construction company.
The next item on the agenda, the City Dock Bulkhead Replacement Project, deserves a bit more space. The City of Annapolis Department of Public Works, together with the Annapolis Harbor Master, had drawn up plans to increase the size of slips to accommodate larger vessels visiting Ego Alley and Annapolis. The wardens understandably had concerns over navigable space for all boats in Ego Alley and rising water levels. After several rounds of revisions, the port wardens approved the department’s plan.
As the harbormaster commented, it is a “balance of a lot of issues”; the Boat Shows and historic preservation, just to name several, all having demands on the same small space. “It was a quid pro quo,” said one port warden of the accepted revisions and plans. “They got what they wanted, and we got what we wanted.” And that’s essentially the spirit and mission of the group: to find balance and compromise in the name of preserving a body of water that’s a resource, a home, an attraction, and a way of life.
Sounds good. But what if none of that directly affects me?
Port wardens do the dirty work; they consider all the things that many of us who enjoy the water take for granted. The group clearly has a love affair with the water and her best interest as well as the city of Annapolis. So, next time you find yourself checking out buoy placement, a bright and shiny new lift as you paddleboard down Spa Creek, or any other number of the seemingly small technical details of the waterway, send thanks out to the hard working body of Annapolis Port wardens for protecting and honoring the resource and your experience on it.
Learn more at annapolis.gov and click to Port Wardens.
by Laura Boycourt
If you’re reading this, chances are pretty strong you’re someone who has enjoyed the waterways in and around Annapolis in some way. If you are, thank a port warden, because they probably have a hand in your particular experiences on the water. Not sure what or who a port warden is? Not sure what they do, exactly? Here’s the 411.
Q: What/who is a port warden?
A: In official language, per the City of Annapolis, the port wardens are, “Five individuals who have a demonstrated interest in and knowledge of responsibilities of port wardens.” Their responsibilities include: “To regulate the placement, erection, and construction of structures in the water, to review permits for construction of marinas and wharves, to regulate the use of mooring buoys, and generally to oversee matters related to the use of waterways.” Appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the aldermen, their term lasts for three years.
The current members include a water taxi driver, a boat builder, a retired Navy serviceman, and a retired federal government economist. Gene Godley, who has been a port warden for 20 years and the group’s chair for 12, says that although it’s a lay group, the members take their jobs very seriously. It’s important for them to, “make firm decisions,” Godley says. “It’s important for precedent to exist.”
Ok, well, what’s their purpose?
Basically, the what, where, when, why, and how of this local slice of the Chesapeake is their business and their duty. That’s a lot of responsibility for a lay group. These guys love the water. While they are mindful of every kayaker and megayachter, their mission and passion is to protect the resource to maximize an existing balance between the wants and needs of many. As Godley says, “Things need to be done carefully when water is given away.”
What are some examples of port warden work?
Their work is expansive! A visit to a port wardens meeting at City Hall in Annapolis yielded the following jam-packed agenda: a proposed vinyl bulkhead for a residence (the port wardens asked why it was necessary), a proposed personal boat lift, and a proposed pier/lift for a marine construction company.
The next item on the agenda, the City Dock Bulkhead Replacement Project, deserves a bit more space. The City of Annapolis Department of Public Works, together with the Annapolis Harbor Master, had drawn up plans to increase the size of slips to accommodate larger vessels visiting Ego Alley and Annapolis. The wardens understandably had concerns over navigable space for all boats in Ego Alley and rising water levels. After several rounds of revisions, the port wardens approved the department’s plan.
As the harbormaster commented, it is a “balance of a lot of issues”; the Boat Shows and historic preservation, just to name several, all having demands on the same small space. “It was a quid pro quo,” said one port warden of the accepted revisions and plans. “They got what they wanted, and we got what we wanted.” And that’s essentially the spirit and mission of the group: to find balance and compromise in the name of preserving a body of water that’s a resource, a home, an attraction, and a way of life.
Sounds good. But what if none of that directly affects me?
Port wardens do the dirty work; they consider all the things that many of us who enjoy the water take for granted. The group clearly has a love affair with the water and her best interest as well as the city of Annapolis. So, next time you find yourself checking out buoy placement, a bright and shiny new lift as you paddleboard down Spa Creek, or any other number of the seemingly small technical details of the waterway, send thanks out to the hard working body of Annapolis Port wardens for protecting and honoring the resource and your experience on it.
Learn more at annapolis.gov and click to Port Wardens.
by Laura Boycourt