Plan floated for large chopper landing pad in waters off Shelter Island

A floating barge in the waters between Shelter Island and Sag Harbor, massive enough to store three or four helicopters and a helipad for takeoffs and landings?

What some local officials are calling far-fetched, is a proposal one man wants to see as a reality.

In a story first reported in the Sag Harbor Express, Justin Ward, a metal designer, who has also been involved in the hospitality industry, told the Express he’s working with a group of investors to make the floating landing pad a reality.

The plan is to build the barge, take it to a location outside the jurisdictions of Sag Harbor and Shelter Island, anchor it, and open it for helicopter traffic. Since East Hampton is in the process of adopting new restrictions on private aircraft taking off and landing at its airport, companies that fly customers to the East End from New York City might like this as a work-around.

Councilman Jim Colligan told the Reporter after Friday evening’s Town Board meeting that he agreed with other local officials that the plan had long odds of ever becoming real.

“But who knows?” Mr. Colligan said. “That’s why we have to be aware of what’s going on. And stay aware of everything.”

Supervisor Gerry Siller told the Express that the Town had been contacted by Mr. Ward and his plan to place the floating heliport beyond the town’s 1,500-foot jurisdictional limit.

“It’s crazy,” Mr. Siller said “It would be worse than it is now because we are on the outskirts of the East Hampton Airport traffic.”

Mr. Siller added that he would consult with the East End Supervisors and Mayors Association to find consensus on a response.

According to the Express, Sag Harbor Mayor Jim Larocca said, “We are not entertaining any proposal from anybody for helicopter service in the harbor, in the nearby bay, or anywhere that would have an impact on the village. This is not going to happen.”

Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. (I-Sag Harbor) said that the scheme was a long shot because of laws that govern aqua culture rights and Coast Guard navigation regulations, among other roadblocks.

Speaking about the limits of municipalities’ jurisdiction, “When you get beyond that, you get into areas where the bottom is owned by the State of New York,” Mr. Thiele said.