Dear Editor,
Several weeks ago, the town advertised for boat mooring proposals. The proposal I submitted was part of the agenda for council in that I would in essence build a free marina at the old lighthouse site, with a 12-foot-wide walkway and a gazebo island for summer boat mooring with an alternate year-round design including two skating areas.
I also offered to pay the town offsetting revenues of up to $250,000. I hope that you will print the proposal for all to consider and thereby open the debate to the public.
The proposal reads as follows:
Mayor and Council,
I would like to open with information that may not be available yet to many people and start with an example.
While I was on vacation overseas, I noticed that all the fishing boats were on top of bamboo islands. I asked why and I was told that a Korean had bought all the shore land and that the only way to keep the boats out of the water was to pull them up onto these new wooden islands.
This is relevant to Sylvan Lake as well, because even if town council outlawed conventional boat lifts, people adapt.
Presently there are many inflatable and foam boat lifts for sale that do not require any permit. They are in essence a separate boat and can be anchored without any permit required. I personally build a boat lift that is both a trailer and a boat lift and can be taken to any lake.
Presently there are many existing boat lifts in the lakes of Alberta, of Canada and of the world. They are usually accepted as a normal need for boaters. They are in all counties, towns and hamlets on Sylvan Lake. They are not a prohibited item to keep in your front yard. There are many boat lifts in front yards in the cabin area of the Town of Sylvan Lake. All are owned by responsible owners that remove the lifts as required from the lake.
In order to put a boat lift into Sylvan Lake Provincial Park, a permit is required — it is a simple process and I don't know if any person has been refused. The lifts must be commercially-built quality and must have lights on them to alert other boaters to their presence. Most of the lifts I have seen are a single-component lift, meaning that once assembled, they are usually never taken apart.
I build a multiple-component lift that is easily assembled by one person within an hour or less. The lifts I build easily fit into the back of a small truck and therefore can be kept in a back yard in a small box.
The Town of Sylvan Lake has a long history of acceptance of conventional boat lifts within the summer boating community. They are used responsibly and comply with all requirements. I feel that there is a very strong commercial opportunity for the town to both provide a service as well as make a revenue from Centennial Park and from the lake access.
I have made a proposal to the town for a boat mooring area near Lighthouse Park.
With my existing inventory and equipment, I have proposed to build a portable mooring area with a decorative walkway leading to an island with a gazebo that has a functioning lighthouse powered by solar lamps. This infrastructure can be done very reasonably in cost, installed in the spring and lifted out in the fall with my equipment.
I feel that if a boat lift component was incorporated into the mooring at Lighthouse Point, with parking I can provide, and a boat lifting and mooring area developed near Centennial Park to allow seasonal boat lifts for rent, the town could capture a lucrative and required market.
In regards to Centennial Park Marina, I have offered to pay the town $100 to $250 per boat lift, for a potential revenue of up to $250,000 over a ten-year lease term. I would build, install and remove all infrastructures as required.
I hope that this respected town council will consider this opportunity and allow me to provide my services in any capacity that may be needed.
I ask council to allow the use of boat lifts within the present boat mooring proposal as a new marina for the people of Sylvan Lake.
Lyle Dressler,
Sylvan Lake