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Teej
Posts: 153 Deckhand
SI North Jetty to close at night...
Teej
Posts: 153 Deckhand
Just back from a special meeting of the Sebastian Inlet District (who built and owns the North Jetty), where they just voted to direct their Exec Dir to shut down the jetty at night (dusk to dawn) immediately due to safety concerns. They noted this had been brewing for 2 years.
The Exec Director stated that he needs to speak with the park and get their cooperation for an immediate shut down. Otherwise, he projected it would take two weeks to tens days for gates to be constructed and installed.
Here's the webpage with the mtg notice as the first link:
http://www.sebastianinletdistrict.com/meetings.jhtml?method=list
Sebastian Inlet District Commission
Special Meeting
Wednesday, 4:30 PM, August 31, 2016
Sebastian Inlet State Park Fishing Museum
Vero Beach, Florida
AGENDA
I. Call to Order –Chairman Lawton Seal
II. Background of Safety and Order Issues at the Inlet and Actions Taken To Date - Administrator
III. Public Comment Period
IV. Commissioners Comments -
Commissioner Mitchell
Commissioner Rowland
Commissioner Perry
Commissioner Pasley
Chairman Lawton Seal
V. Adjournment
The Exec Director stated that he needs to speak with the park and get their cooperation for an immediate shut down. Otherwise, he projected it would take two weeks to tens days for gates to be constructed and installed.
Here's the webpage with the mtg notice as the first link:
http://www.sebastianinletdistrict.com/meetings.jhtml?method=list
Sebastian Inlet District Commission
Special Meeting
Wednesday, 4:30 PM, August 31, 2016
Sebastian Inlet State Park Fishing Museum
Vero Beach, Florida
AGENDA
I. Call to Order –Chairman Lawton Seal
II. Background of Safety and Order Issues at the Inlet and Actions Taken To Date - Administrator
III. Public Comment Period
IV. Commissioners Comments -
Commissioner Mitchell
Commissioner Rowland
Commissioner Perry
Commissioner Pasley
Chairman Lawton Seal
V. Adjournment
Replies
I would be interested to see what all constitutes the preponderance of "safety concerns" that requires such drastic measures.
Hadn't heard that at all - your first post is more inline with what appears to be the straw that broke the camel's back.
that's too bad for those guys. ( put yourself in their position)
not everyone can afford a boat.
on the other hand that will really be a boom to the fishery
Many things to do.
Knots to be unraveled
'fore the darkness falls on you
I know some know this...but some very good spots are not on either jetty....
Many things to do.
Knots to be unraveled
'fore the darkness falls on you
I have had some fun fishing from shore in the Sebastian Inlet area not on either jetty myself.
Dang I've always thought it was around 1,000 feet. Guess both of us are wrong though
Years ago the Trident basin at the port used to be open to boats ( long before 9-11 ) but one JA let his boat drift into and bounce off a nuclear sub. SO everybody gets the boot.
But that's the easy way, screw everybody.
At the mtg, the Commission noted that this has been brewing for some time, the past two years in particular. People complaining to them instead of the Park and FWC, who are supposed to maintain public order and safety, but it seemed were not fulfilling people's expectations, so folks complained to the Inlet District itself. Things like people defecating on the jetty to claim fishing territory, threatening others with knives.
After a guy got his tires slashed, the Inlet District did install cameras and put up signs of appropriate conduct. Yet, during turtle season, they can't light the area and the cameras require constant cleaning from salt air. The cameras and signs can back up a complaint/violation to assist making one stick yet not sure how much they can do to enforce order.
The recent injury incident, as I understand, had been accompanied by threats to sue - that the people who own the Jetty (Inlet District) had known for years that problems were threatening safe boater navigation and the public safety on their property - it left the District vulnerable to coughing up taxpayer dough if they didn't act, they'd have nothing to hang their hat on that they were taking the matter seriously. IMO, at the mtg, it seemed the Inlet Commission felt they had to act; that their partners were leaving them hanging by not being more strident in keeping order.
Keep in mind, this is supposed to be only a dusk to dawn temporary closure until a new, more functional, Memorandum of Understanding is developed between the Park, FWC and the Inlet District to ensure public order and safety.
Folks who fish the jetty should also keep in mind that if they see inappropriate behavior they don't need to confront the person (nor should they), they can simply text the FWC ([email protected]) [I know, looks like an email address but it works texting to it]- the new signs note this. Solely my opinion, it will take that kind of self policing on the jetty for the JA's to get weeded out and open things up at night again.
Everything I read yesterday from LEO was that the closure was due mainly from the lead sinker slinging. A boater with children aboard was injured while trying to remove lures and line from his boat. His finger was almost severed due to a jetty fisherman who was jerking like when setting a hook while the boater had the line wrapped around his hand while removing it from his boat.They said that was the last straw. It also read it was temporary closure till they find a solution or add more Law Enforcement since the Park Rangers have no law authority since 2013.
Thuggery causes Sebastian north jetty to close at night
SEBASTIAN INLET — Because of increasing reports of vengeful behavior by some fishermen, Sebastian Inlet’s popular north jetty fishing pier will be closed at night for a temporary period starting in about two weeks.
At a special meeting Wednesday, the five-member Sebastian Inlet District Commission voted 3-2 in an unprecedented move to close the 745-foot jetty from dusk to dawn daily while commission staff and its legal counsel work with state and local agencies for better law enforcement and ways to quell the reckless activity.
Of primary concern to the commission are the numerous reports its staff has received from boaters becoming the targets of jetty anglers throwing or casting lead weights, lures and other objects into their boats, mostly at night.
A small band of troublemakers are believed responsible.
Despite the fact the jetty is within the Sebastian Inlet State Park, the jetty is owned and maintained by the Sebastian Inlet District making the district responsible for the management of the pier. It also maintains and manages the inlet waterway that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Indian River.
District administrator Martin Smithson said there were isolated cases of angler-boater interaction for years, but more serious incidents have escalated in the last two years.
“We have a file full of complaints from boaters who have been struck with objects thrown from the jetty,” Smithson said. “A bad situation is just waiting to happen where someone gets hit and falls overboard.”
The most recent incident occurred on Aug. 12 at 8:30 p.m. when a boater nearly lost a finger that became wrapped in an angler’s line he was trying to clear from the cockpit of his boat. In the process the angler jerked hard on the line. The injury required medical treatment.
Scott Schopke showed the commissioners the 2-ounce plastic-tail jig that was cast into the boat occupied by his son and his girlfriend.
“It was the second of two lines cast toward them,” Schopie said. “There’s a big difference between bad sportsmanship and malicious intent. This guy who made the cast made a malicious attempt to injure my son.”
Florida statute 790.19, in part, states that hurling or projecting a missile into a vessel is a second-degree felony punishable by the maximum of 15 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
During outgoing inlet tides, when the turbulence peaks at the mouth of the inlet, boaters entering and exiting the inlet will follow the calmer conditions along the curvature of the jetty, putting them within range of the casters. Because of its strong tides and narrow width Sebastian is regarded as a dangerous inlet to navigate.
Smithson said it would take at least two weeks to construct a barrier and gate at the western most point of the jetty. The gate will be locked each evening and anyone found on the jetty between dusk and dawn will be charged with illegal trespassing.
All other areas of the inlet and the park will remain open 24 hours a day.
“When we find some answers to the problems we’ll call for another special (commission) meeting and the commissioners will consider re-opening the jetty,” Smithson said.
Commissioner Beth Mitchell of Sebastian, who made the motion for closure, said the commission has been diligent. “But the agencies involved have not been as responsive. We need our people to work with these agencies to do a better job.”
The district does not have law enforcement personnel, nor does Florida State Parks, which turned over its law enforcement responsibilities in 2012 to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The Brevard County Sheriff’s Office also has jurisdiction on the jetty.
Several of the two dozen people at the meeting said there is little, if any, law enforcement presence on the jetty.
“We need law enforcement,” Jose Dore said. “We never see law enforcement out there.”
Mike Maher said he quit fishing at night because of the problems.
“I’ve been hit numerous times in my boat and I’d get yelled at and threatened,” Maher said, adding that similar trouble also occurs for boaters around the catwalk areas under the State Road A1A Bridge.
Alan Kershaw suggested charging an extra fee, in addition to the state park user fee, for using the jetty. “That might weed out the trouble makers. Education is needed for the people on the jetty.”
The concrete-capped jetty, equipped with safety railings, offers anglers access to fishing areas otherwise inaccessible to land-based fishermen. Sebastian Inlet is recognized as one of the top sportfishing centers in Florida for multiple species and the north jetty is the focal point.
Bill Sargent has been writing about outdoor subjects for FLORIDA TODAY for 48 years
http://www.floridatoday.com/story/sports/2016/09/01/sargent-sebastian-north-jetty-closing-night/89744380/
Day and night closure.,..and all the issues stop....permanently.
Many things to do.
Knots to be unraveled
'fore the darkness falls on you
* At a special meeting Wednesday, the five-member Sebastian Inlet District Commission voted 3-2 in an unprecedented move to close the 745-foot jetty *
It has always been referred to as a 700 foot jetty....
Many things to do.
Knots to be unraveled
'fore the darkness falls on you
Law enforcement are not baby sitters for bad behavior....
It is also very expensive. We are stretched way too thin on LEO's at FWC anyway....And we can't keep good officers because they don't pay worth $h!+..... They go to better paying agencies after getting some experience.
Many things to do.
Knots to be unraveled
'fore the darkness falls on you
That's where it gets....complicated. The park is the only entity that can charge and their proceeds can't be redirected by any other mechanism than the Florida Legislature - they have complete control on state spending.
Having worked in conjunction with the FWC Commission, Marine Fisheries staff and LEO, they do a very good job and run almost constant sting operations at the inlet. As Duckman noted they can't be there all the time and if they're in uniform everyone minds their manners. If not in uniform, on a sting, they're looking for bang for the buck on getting some rock solid, make a dent in things conviction - meaning enforcing etiquette, good sportsmanship type things blows a sting operation.
As well FWC law enforcement is a turnstile job due to low funding. The have a handful of officers for very large district areas to cover both hunting and fresh/saltwater fishing. The agency seeks those who love the job for the outdoors element because only making $40k a year and the immense workload is tough. The guys who do get married, have kids and need to make more for their families know they can immediately go to FHP, County Sherrif or other agencies and make more..in fact those really willing to put the outdoors behind them can go to US Customs and double their salary.
People talk about this in vague terms but the term "culture" is the issue here. A bad culture has evolved at the jetty and it's going to take some time to reverse it. We all have our favorite sports teams and when they lose a lot we all recognize things gotta change, the losing culture has to be stopped with higher expectations. We are seeing that unfold now at the jetty and I for one give the Commissioners a tip of the hat for having the guts to initiate the cultural change. The question now is how is it done...what is too tough and unfair, what are reasonable solutions to work towards the cultural change needed.
I sure hope they don't close it. The inlet is one of my favorite places on this earth, I've been fishing there since I was a wee lad back in the 70's. Back when they sold frozen sand fleas in the Chinese take out containers.
Yeah, IMO what is getting the "extreme" label isn't the closure...it's the way it was apparently "suddenly" done. At the meeting, there was a guy clearly upset when the motion came up to close the jetty at night AFTER the public comment period. He complained that wasn't on the agenda, how was he supposed to know to comment about that. I empathized with his concern - in my past experience most legal bodies have first and second readings of actions and the Inlet District already does this with their annual budget - this issue though, I also empathize with the Commissioners, it's a completely different animal from their normal work to maintain the inlet channel.
That being said, the issue of the Inlet District commissioners leaving the thousands of taxpayers they represent culpable for paying damages to someone injured by a person on their property, when they had been told numerous times things like this were occurring, is something that just didn't seem appropriate to wait for a first and second hearing. More so, the commission had IMO (which I stated on the record at the mtg) been imploring for well over a year for the Park and FWC to do more - the commission even funded (your tax dollars) to the tune of ~$10k the installation or cameras and signs to provide tools for the Park & FWC to enforce etiquette and make enforcement stick.
IMO, the key is how things move forward. How are potential solutions to eventually reopen the jetty at night brought forward? At a minimum, how is the membership of the inlet district (property tax payers in this area of Brevard and Indian River County - http://www.sebastianinletdistrict.com/aboutus_file.jhtml?id=1&file=SIDBoundaryMap.pdf) given an opportunity to comment on those solutions prior to final vote on implementation? How is the general public engaged so they understand that the solutions they offer have to work in the shared management framework that exists between the Inlet District (property owner), State Park (daily user management) and the FWC (law enforcement). Each entity has boundaries, either by charter (Inlet District), Legislative authority (Park and FWC) to what they can do that the public needs to understand or at least (again, IMO) have had the opportunity to learn. When solutions are then laid out, the public has the ability to grasp the rationale and while they may not agree with what each entity ultimately votes or decides to implement - they do understand why and we avoid the angst and name calling of corrupt public officials.
No easy task, again tip of the hat to the Commission...lets see where it goes from here.
Duckman, I have a boat and normally fish offshore but my kids love to head to the inlet for a couple hours w.out the hassle of dragging the boat, cleaning it etc and fish. Your solution would screw a lot of folks that enjoy the great sport of fishing that dont have access to boats or just want a quick fix on their passion of fishing, myself included. Seems like an easy fix to me....if slinging sinkers is really punishable by up to 15 years in prison, find one of the idiot offenders and make an example and send him to prison see how quickly it stops!