SNOW HILL – County officials will consider a local boat captain’s request to use the South Point boat ramp for his charter business next week.
On Tuesday, the Worcester County Commissioners are expected to consider a special use permit request from Marc Spagnola, who wants to launch his boat from the South Point ramp. Spagnola submitted the request in the wake of the commissioners’ decision last week to delay approval of updated boat ramp regulations, which staff said need further review.
“We need more time to investigate how other counties handle it and what is a fair and equitable response,” Chief Administrative Officer Weston Young said this week.
Last Tuesday, the commissioners hosted a public hearing regarding new boat ramp regulations that would allow limited commercial activity at county boat ramps. The proposed bill would allow commercial use as long as it didn’t create conflict with recreational boaters or damage county property. Commercial users would also be prohibited from using more than one parking space in the boat landing lot.
Commissioners voiced various concerns with the proposal and voted 4-2 to deliberate further.
As a result, attorney Mark Cropper submitted a special use permit request on behalf of Spagnola the next day. Spagnola’s previous permit expired in February of 2023 and while many commercial entities, including crabbers and boat dealers, use the ramps, Cropper said there had been complaints from South Point residents about Spagnola using the ramp.
“To my knowledge, all such commercial businesses are knowingly, intentionally and openly violating the law, but only Marc Spagnola is under
threat of receiving a citation…,” Cropper wrote in a July 19 letter to the commissioners. “Should the Commissioners pass legislation that makes this special use permit moot, it will be withdrawn. However, my client should not be under threat of citation for using county owned boat ramps for his commercial purposes when others are being allowed by the county to do the same, but without such a threat.”
Young said that the boat ramp legislation discussed last week was still being reviewed and the bill would not be reconsidered at the commissioners’ Aug. 1 meeting. As a result, they’ll be entertaining the special use permit request.
Young said staff were currently reviewing how other counties handled commercial usage of recreational boat ramps.
“We’re trying to untangle the commercial use of our boat ramps, as we have commercial entities that utilize our boat ramps, which within our current laws is illegal…,” he said. “At the end of the day these ramps are for the public and we do not want that impeded.”
He said the bill could potentially be reconsidered at the commissioners’ second meeting in August.
