It’s no secret the Historic Bridge Street Pier and the attached day dock have been a point of conflict in Bradenton Beach.
Now it seems there may be an end to the disagreement.
Bradenton Beach officials and representatives with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection spoke Feb. 29 to clear up the day dock’s use for private and commercial vessels.
The city leases the pier/dock submerged lands from the DEP.
According to Bradenton Beach Police Chief Sam Speciale, the message the city got from the DEP was the day dock could be used by professional vessels, but only for loading and offloading passengers.
No payments can be exchanged at the dock.
The lease authorizes the city to operate a seven-slip dock to be “used exclusively for temporary mooring of recreational vessels and water taxis in conjunction with an upland municipal parking lot, bath house, dock master’s office and bait shop.”
Currently, Sherman Baldwin, owner of Paradise Boat Tours, operates the bait shop, a storefront at the pier entrance. He also operates a tour boat from the day dock and sells tickets at the bait shop.
John Maguire, who has been selling bait at the dock since July 2015, is in the wrong, according to the DEP’s interpretation of the lease. Maguire is moored to the dock and exchanges money for bait on his boat.
Speciale said the city is waiting for the official, written DEP opinion before moving forward.
Speciale said the city may create a designated “commercial vessel” slip at the east end of the dock.
As of The Islander’s March 7 press time, the DEP’s written opinion hadn’t reached Bradenton Beach City Hall.
Maguire said he has no intention of moving from his spot on the day dock.
Maguire has moored his 24-foot boat to what he calls an unusable portion of the day dock. “I’m only taking up one cleat,” he said, “and my boat’s been damaged by knocking against the buffers. Nobody in their right mind would want to dock here.”
Maguire said in the nine months he’s been at the dock, he’s sold fishers more than 140,000 shrimp.
He also said he often acts as an unofficial dockmaster. “If I have to leave, who’s going to help everyone when they try to moor here?”
On March 2, he said he had sold 43 dozen shrimp in a couple of days.
“My shrimp is quality, it’s what the guys up here want,” Maguire said. “The shrimp they sell at the bait shop is no good and isn’t worth what they pay for it. (Baldwin) doesn’t even want to sell bait, but he does it so he can have the space.”
Maguire said it was a slap in his face to be told to leave.
Other Bradenton Beach businesses are eyeing space at the pier, too.
YOLO Parasailing owner Ryan Davis said he’s spent more than $500,000 in slip rental at another location and insurance, and it seems unfair that some businesses use the dock for free.
“I’ve seen other parasailing companies sit there for three hours and not move,” Davis said. “If they can do it, then I’m going to start doing it, too.”
Davis said he plans to start advertising that YOLO will pick up customers from the pier. “It’s the best spot in the city, why can’t I?”