Letters

Letter: ‘No Swimming’ or else

JULIE LANE PHOTO | Science Club students collected samples for a dragonfly study last month at Fresh Pond, a site the county would like to close for swimming.

The following letter dated March 23, sent to the Town Recreation Department, has touched off what Supervisor Jim Dougherty on Tuesday said could cause a “disaster” this summer if adequate beach facilities aren’t available. It was addressed to former Public Works Commissioner Mark Ketcham and forwarded to Councilman Peter Reich, who read it aloud at the Town Board work session a week ago:

Dear Mr. Ketcham:

It has been reported and confirmed by this office that swimming has been occurring at the above referenced facility [Fresh Pond] located at/near Fresh Pond Road. Field visits by the Suffolk County Department of Health Services (SCDHS), Office of Ecology, during the summer of 2011, documented the following: patrons swimming, parking is permitted by permit only, parking spaces for 10+ cars and no signage indicating “Swimming Prohibited” (Figures 1-4). These are indicative of a public bathing beach and encourage the use thereof.

A review of the records of this Office indicate that there is no Permit to Operate a bathing beach in force for this facility. The New York State Sanitary Code Subpart 6-2, Bathing Beaches, states: “No municipality, person, group of persons, firm, corporation, association, organization or institution shall operate or maintain or permit the use of any bathing beach without a permit from the permit-issuing official issued subject to the provisions of this Chapter and such additional sanitary or safety safeguards as may be required by the permit-issuing official.”

Allowing the use of this or any other location without lifeguard protection is dangerous. Additionally, this site does not meet the design standards for a public bathing beach as per the New York State Sanitary Code Subpart 6-2, due to the lack of beachfront, permanent bathroom facilities, water quality testing, etc. Whether people are encouraged or not, the fact remains that people use this facility to recreate and swim, therefore, the dead end road (i.e. Fresh Pond Road) leading to Fresh Pond … should be placarded with a sign stating “No Lifeguard on Duty ­— Swimming Prohibited.” The town also has the responsibility of strictly enforcing this regulation.

It has also come to our attention that there are other locations that have become popular to swim at (Shell Beach and Menhaden Landing) on Shelter Island; we encourage the use of this sign there as well. Please do not encourage swimming by advertising these sites as such or install any type of bathroom facility. Any deliberation by the Town of Shelter Island to install port-a-johns at these locations should be reconsidered as this would encourage the use of these locations as bathing beaches. If the town would like to open these areas to swimming, then an application and approval from the Suffolk County Department of Health Services must be obtained first.

Thank you for your cooperation regarding this matter. If you have any questions, please contact this office at (631) 852-5760.

Sincerely,
Nancy B. Pierson
Senior Public Health Sanitarian
Bureau of Marine Resources