Harbor Management Plan Town of Old Lyme, Connecticut Revised January 2012
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HARBOR MANAGEMENT PLAN TOWN OF OLD LYME, CONNECTICUT REVISED JANUARY 2012 PREPARED BY: HARBOR MANAGEMENT COMMISSION PREFACE OLD LYME HARBOR MANAGEMENT PLAN In 1984 Connecticut enacted pioneering legislation that authorizes municipalities having navigable waters to establish harbor management commissions and prepare harbor management plans. The plan may be understood as a "wet side" application of more traditional land use planning theories and techniques. The Harbor Management Commission may be regarded as the planning and zoning commission of the water but without the clearly established legal basis of landside zoning. Its geographic jurisdiction starts at the mean high water mark (including navigable rivers and streams) and extends outward. The Old Lyme Harbor Management Plan consists of six parts as follows: A. EXISTING CONDITIONS: The geographic extent and nature of the adjacent water, current waterfront, and water use. B. HARBOR MANAGEMENT ISSUE IDENTIFICATION: Water-related issues, problems, and needs. C. HARBOR MANAGEMENT GOALS: Using the information of A and B, identification of the goals for the preservation, use, and development of the waters. These goals to be consistent with the goals of the Old Lyme Coastal Management Program (which relate to areas inward from the mean high water mark). D. POLICIES AND RECOMMENDATIONS: The specific plan for water use., including where structures may be encouraged or prohibited. E. HARBOR MANAGEMENT ORDINANCE: Recommended ordinance. F. RECOMMENDED MINIMUM TACKLE SPECIFICATIONS: Mooring tackle recommendations. (These standards will be advisory only; the Town of Old Lyme will assume no liability for personal injury or property damage that results from the utilization of these standards.) G. DOCK STANDARDS: Standards for the placement and construction of docks and walkways. Steven A. Ross Chairman Harbor Management Commission TABLE OF CONTENTS SUMMARY ..................................................................................................................................... i OLD LYME EXISTING CONDITIONS ....................................................................................... 1 HISTORY ................................................................................................................................... 1 PHYSICAL SETTING ............................................................................................................... 2 WATER QUALITY .................................................................................................................... 2 SURFACE WATER CLASSIFICATIONS, USES AND DISCHARGES ALLOWED ....... 3 COASTAL RESOURCES .......................................................................................................... 3 SHOREFRONT FRONTAGE BY RESOURCES AND LAND USE* ................................. 4 ROCKY SHOREFRONTS ......................................................................................................... 4 BLUFFS AND ESCARPEMENTS ............................................................................................ 4 TIDAL WETLANDS.................................................................................................................. 5 BEACHES AND DUNES .......................................................................................................... 5 INTERTIDAL FLATS................................................................................................................ 6 COASTAL WATERS AND ESTUARINE EMBAYMENTS ................................................... 6 SHELLFISH CONCENTRATION AREAS .............................................................................. 6 ISLANDS .................................................................................................................................... 7 EXISTING LAND USES ........................................................................................................... 7 BEACH AND SEASONAL COMMUNITIES .......................................................................... 8 STATE PARK ............................................................................................................................ 8 VACANT LAND WITHIN OLD LYME~S COASTAL AREA BY ZONE DISTRICT .......... 8 UTILITIES .................................................................................................................................. 9 MARINAS ................................................................................................................................. 9 WATER USE ............................................................................................................................ 11 JETTIES .................................................................................................................................... 11 OLD LYME HARBOR MANAGEMENT ISSUES .................................................................... 13 ONGOING OLD LYME HARBOR MANAGEMENT GOALS ................................................ 15 POLICIES AND RECOMMENDATIONS .................................................................................. 17 Old Lyme Water Use Plan ..................................................................................................... 17 Harbor Administration ........................................................................................................... 20 HARBOR MANAGEMENT ORDINANCE ............................................................................... 22 ARTICLE I – General Provisions ............................................................................................. 22 ARTICLE II – Traffic and Speed ............................................................................................. 23 ARTICLE III – Harbor Use Regulations .................................................................................. 23 ARTICLE IV – Anchoring, Mooring, and Security of Vessels ................................................ 25 ARTICLE V – Sanitation Regulations ..................................................................................... 30 ARTICLE VI - Safety ............................................................................................................... 31 ARTICLE VII - Definitions ...................................................................................................... 31 MINIMUM MOORING TACKLE SPECIFICATIONS .............................................................. 33 LIST OF FIGURES ...................................................................................................................... 34 Figure 1a, Coastal Resources, CT River to Long Island Sound ............................................... 35 Figure 1.b – Coastal Resources, CT River to Four Mile River................................................. 36 Figure 2.a – Present Water Use, CT River to LI Sound ........................................................... 37 Figure 2.b – Present Water Use, CT River to Four Mile River ................................................ 38 Figure 3.a – Proposed Water Use Plan, CT River to LI Sound ................................................ 39 Figure 3.b – Proposed Water Use Plan, CT River to Four Mile River ..................................... 40 Figure 4 – Old Lyme Waters .................................................................................................... 41 Figure 5– Mooring Permits, Swing Circles Within Side Reference Lines ............................... 42 Figure 6 – Mooring Permits, Swing Circles Beyond Side Reference Lines ............................. 43 Figure 7 – Mooring Permits, Swing Circles Relative to Federal Channel................................ 44 APPENDIX A - Ordinance/Regulation ........................................................................................ 45 APPENDIX B - Original Members & Terms ............................................................................... 46 APPENDIX C - Commission By-laws ......................................................................................... 47 ARTICLE I - Organization ....................................................................................................... 47 ARTICLE II - Officers & Duties .............................................................................................. 47 ARTICLE III - Commission Meetings ..................................................................................... 48 ARTICLE IV - Hearings ........................................................................................................... 50 ARTICLE V - Records ............................................................................................................. 50 ARTICLE VI - Miscellaneous .................................................................................................. 51 Appendix D - Permit & Regulatory Authorities ........................................................................... 52 APPENDIX E - Glossary .............................................................................................................. 60 Harbor Management Plan Addendum .......................................................................................... 62 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 62 Historical Background .............................................................................................................. 62 Historical