Bay Roberts marina application snagged by red tape

By Mark Squibb

An application made to the federal government by The Royal Canadian Legion Branch 32 for marina maintenance funding has hit a rough patch.

The committee had applied for some $2.9 million in federal funding for much-needed repairs and maintenance back in January.

“There seems to be a snag with that,” explained marina committee liaison Deputy Mayor Geoff Seymor during this week’s public council meeting. “That pot of federal government money was open to towns that applied for it, whereas they applied as the Royal Canadian Legion. So, we don’t know if it would have been better if we had applied for it or not, but it’s too late now. So, we need to keep that in mind if it comes up again.”

Seymour said that as of the most recent committee meeting, held last Monday, the group hadn’t been refused the funding as of yet, and that it was working behind the scenes to rectify the problem.

“They haven’t gotten a ‘No,’ but they have run into a barrier,” said Seymour. “That aside, they’re probably looking at, from what I gathered from the meeting, about $500,000 just for the minimal work on the marina facility. So, they’ve got a challenge, there’s no doubt about that.”

Councillor Dean Franey asked whether it would help, if not already too late, if the Town wrote a letter of support for the Legion.

“Unfortunately, there was a miscommunication, and the Legion applied when it should have been the Town, but maybe if the Town wrote a letter of support on behalf of the Legion to the federal authority, it might help out with it,” said Franey.

Mayor Walter Yetman pointed out how the Town and Legion have worked in partnership in the past, adding the Town was instrumental in getting the marina built in the first place.

Councillor Ross Petten, a member of the Legion, said that as far as he knew, towns that have applied for the funding have already been awarded it, but that all the funds have not yet been entirely spent.

Council was agreeable to Franey’s suggestion to write a letter of support. Yetman also suggested, if need be, the two groups form an “informal partnership,” so as to secure the funding.

The marina opened in September 1999 and is capable of berthing any size vessel up to 60 feet in length.

The marina boasts 400 feet of landscaped waterfront property from the slipway to the Klondyke Causeway plus a 300-foot apron with two finger piers. It also boasts a number of floating docks.