Carp fishers might have a few more chances to dip into the Seneca River this summer. The village of Baldwinsville board of trustees approved Wild Carp Companies’ request to host overnight carp fishing events during weekends in June, July and August at the July 2 meeting.
WCC, which hosts the spring Wild Carp Classic and fall Ed French Open, also coordinates events for the Wild Carp Club of CNY. The club has held events at Onondaga Lake Park and seeks to use the 13 “pegs” created along the river for the Wild Carp Classic for a handful of summer weekend fishing events.
“I know a lot of local guys have been fishing them regularly,” said WCC owner and club director Jason Bernhardt.
Bernhardt said the regular fishing meant the village would not have to clear the pegs of aquatic plant overgrowth, and he promised that the fishers would keep their vehicles off the trail near Community Park, since the village is planning to resurface the trail soon.
“I see no issue with this at all,” Police Chief Michael Lefancheck said of possible safety issues. “They’ve been good stewards in the past.”
“I think it’s good for the village,” Mayor Dick Clarke said. “People will see our town … maybe stop somewhere to eat Sunday. Any time we can get our face out there is good.”
Clarke told Bernhardt to clear his event dates with Village Clerk Moe Butler, the DPW and the police to avoid conflicts with other community events.
Bernhardt also said the fishers would not create excessive noise, as loud music would scare the fish. Deputy Mayor Bruce Stebbins said Bernhardt should check with the clerk about summer fireworks displays too.
“If your fish don’t like music, they won’t like fireworks,” he said.
Also on the agenda
-Baldwin Canal Square: The board’s parks committee recommended instituting a $50 daily licensing agreement fee to rent out Baldwin Canal Square, which the board approved. Clarke said Jim Orlando, owner of the B’ville Diner, said he would pay the fee retroactively for this year’s car shows.
The committee is still discussing what an appropriate security deposit would be and whether the licensing agreement should include arrangements for portable toilet facilities.
-Security deposits: The board voted to withhold the $1,500 security deposit from event promoter Eric Binion’s June 18 concert at Paper Mill Island. Binion’s staff did not clean up after the concert and left debris in the canal, which New York state lock employees had to clean up.
“They’re not thrilled and we’re not thrilled,” Clarke said. “It has become popular to say, ‘Well, why don’t you just clean it up and send us a bill?’ … [I find that] personally offensive.”
Stebbins said Binion is a “repeat offender” when it comes to not following the village’s terms for use of the island. Clarke said the promoter had provided various excuses as to why staff couldn’t clean up the island.
“You can only use the excuse that the dog ate the homework one time, and they keep coming up with excuses,” Clarke said.
“This promoter has to realize that the future of holding events at Paper Mill Island depends on his compliance,” Trustee Rick Presley said.
-Wedding at PMI? Fulton resident Schuyler Burke approached the board to ask if she could reserve Paper Mill Island for her wedding in July 2016. Clarke said while some people have married on the island, no one has ever reserved the island for an event other than a festival or concert.
“To book the following season, we give promotions first [priority],” Presley told Burke.
Normally, people seeking to hold events on the island would have to wait until promoters booked their summer dates, so Burke might not hear whether her date was available until May 2016, two months before her wedding. Clarke said he didn’t want to leave Burke without a venue so close to her date, so the board will discuss her case and make a decision at the next meeting July 16.
-Marble Street project: The village awarded the Marble Street docking sidewalk project to Lee Construction, which had the lowest bid of $10,760. Stebbins said the village had budgeted $11,000 for the project, which will connect the dock on Marble Street to the sidewalk. He could not say when construction would begin.
