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City must educate in depth on marina

By Times editorial
Published July 23, 2006

With a unanimous "yes," the Clearwater City Council decided Thursday night to ask voters in November whether they want a public marina on the downtown waterfront.

This issue will sound familiar to Clearwater voters. In November 2004, the city held a referendum on a plan for a downtown marina. By a narrow margin, voters said no.

However, that 2004 plan included two other projects in addition to the marina: a public parking garage to be built under the new Clearwater Memorial Causeway and improvements to Coachman Park that would have eliminated asphalt parking lots, added landscaping and built a new stage for outdoor events.

In this fall's referendum, the city will keep it simple. Voters will be asked merely whether they approve or disapprove construction of boat slips on the Intracoastal Waterway at the base of Coachman Park.

Because three projects were combined on the 2004 referendum ballot, it was unclear exactly what voters didn't like. While some no doubt opposed the marina, others liked the marina but didn't want a parking garage. The biggest unknown was the impact of a local opposition group's campaign that painted a false picture of a new Coachman Park littered with fixed seating and big structures.

Cognizant of the need to do their homework before scheduling another referendum, the city hired a host of experts who have spent months studying the waterway and the marketplace, checking the financing numbers and drawing rough plans. By Nov. 7, city officials hope to have answered all of the voters' questions.

"This is going to be a transparent process," Mayor Frank Hibbard said. "We want to make sure everyone knows what the project will be and will not be. I encourage everyone to get educated on it."

The city will help out with that. The City Council's vote Thursday night not only okayed the scheduling of a referendum but also the creation of a public information campaign that will include public meetings and educational materials.

Preliminary marina plans call for 129 boat slips that will be leased out, as well as temporary docking space for boaters who just want to tie up for a few hours to visit downtown. There will be no fueling facilities; boaters will have to go to the city marina on Clearwater Beach for that. There also will be space at the docks for a ferry boat to take passengers to and from Clearwater Beach.

The city wants to build a dockmaster's office and restrooms on the mainland to service the marina. The city should keep those facilities minimal and low-slung to preserve views.

The estimated cost of the marina project is almost $11-million, most of which would be bonded. The marina would be open by early 2009.

The city still has to decide a couple of important matters: exactly how the project will be financed - Hibbard correctly noted that voters deserve to know that detail - and what kind of commercial vessels, if any, will be allowed to dock there.

Voters aren't the only ones who have to sign off on the marina idea. Permits will be needed from county, state and federal agencies, each with its own review process.

After the wording of the referendum question is finalized sometime next month, a big job will remain for city officials: coming up with thorough and unambiguous answers to questions about the marina's financing, design, purpose, and impact on the environment, Coachman Park, downtown economic development, downtown residents and the city treasury. Some voters will ask, "Why do we need a marina, and who will benefit from it?"

Good questions deserve good answers.

[Last modified July 23, 2006, 07:34:56]