Bay Roberts wants list of Port de Grave boat owners

By Mark Squibb/April 6, 2023

A discussion regarding fire protection service fees in outlying areas such as Port de Grave dominated a significant chunk of a Bay Robert’s public meeting last month, and within the opening minutes of last week’s meeting, councillor Dean Franey broached the subject once again.

The problem, in a nutshell, is that The Town of Bay Roberts provides fire protection services to Bareneed and Port de Grave, but not everyone is paying the required fire protection fees.

In addition, council says it doesn’t have an accurate count of either the number of residencies in those communities or the number boats tied up in the harbour.

After discussing the matter at length on March 14, council voted to arrange a meeting with the Harbour Authority about a proposed plan to send it a single invoice based on the number of boats tied up in Port de Grave, a number the Harbour Authority would have to first provide to the Town.

In the opening minutes of the most recent meeting, Franey touched upon the matter, saying the meeting will not likely take place until later in the year, and the new billing method won’t come into effect until next year.

In the interim, Franey said, council ought to reach out to the Harbour Authority and request an updated list of boats tied up in the harbour.

“Because, just from talking with people, there are boats in the harbour that we don’t have (on file,” said Franey. “So, if we can get that list from them right away, at least for this year, while we’re still doing it ourselves, we can have that list and makes sure nobody is missed.”

The matter wasn’t voted on, but was noted for the public record.