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County must also consider boaters' needs in ramp issue

By DIANE STEINLE
Published September 13, 2005

Dunedin commissioners might squabble from time to time, but on one issue they were firmly united last week: They oppose construction of any public boat ramps at Honeymoon Island State Park.

Dunedin has no jurisdiction over the park, it is a state-operated facility, but commissioners hope their opinion, as officials of the municipality closest to the park, will carry some weight as the state and county governments study potential locations for public boat ramps.

One thing is certain. As long as local governments and Pinellas neighborhoods continue to fight construction of boat ramps, giving boaters new and better access to the waterways around Pinellas County will be difficult. No one has stepped forward and said, "Hey, build them here!"

County government is studying the potential impacts of putting ramps at Honeymoon Island after the state showed renewed interest earlier this year in locating ramps there. The county study will determine what the construction of ramps and parking areas and heavier boat traffic would do to the marine ecosystem around the island. The study also will look at traffic impacts on Dunedin Causeway, the only route from the mainland to the island.

Those who oppose ramps at Honeymoon have said the island is too pristine for ramps. They have argued that the island and its wildlife habitats should be protected from such intensive use.

Protection of natural resources and preservation of pristine areas are extremely important. However, the opponents' arguments about Honeymoon Island sometimes overlook two factors. Honeymoon Island already gets heavy use as one of the most popular state parks and the launching facility for the Caladesi Island ferry. And the amount of traffic to the ramps can be controlled to a great degree by limiting the number of ramps constructed there.

No one wants to see a massive ramp facility like that at the county's Fort DeSoto Park built at Honeymoon Island, but could a few ramps be located there without causing harm to the ecosystem or the public's enjoyment of the park? The county's study hopefully will explore that issue too.

Every time a plan for boat ramps has been floated in North Pinellas, people who live nearby or local government officials representing them have opposed the ramps, arguing that ramps bring noise, traffic, trash and habitat destruction.

Meanwhile, there are thousands of boaters in Pinellas County clamoring for access to the water and who expect their local governments to consider their needs too.

The solution, for those studying the boat access issue, might be to increase the inventory of ramps in Pinellas by putting a ramp or two in lots of locations, rather than building major ramp facilities in a few spots.

[Last modified September 13, 2005, 01:45:22]