Chautauqua County Executive PJ Wendel at Boat User Fee meeting (April 12, 2023)

Chautauqua County will move forward with studying a potential boat fee for users of Chautauqua Lake.

Chautauqua County Executive PJ Wendel hosted a public forum that was attended by about two dozen people Wednesday to see if there was a willingness to look at implementing the fee, “We saw a show of hands. The majority of people want to continue. So, we’ll go back. We’ll talk to Planning and Economic Development and start to implement what we’re going to do. Barton & LoGuidice were here. They’ll review what we do going forward and what the scope of work will be.”

Wendel said he expects some pushback but is optimistic about the process.

He said a boat fee would be used to help fund lake maintenance efforts that are currently being done as well to help fund the Chautauqua Lake and Watershed Management Alliance, who uses a metric system to distribute funds for lake efforts. Wendel said this would help reduce the amount local foundations have to support lake efforts.

For 2023, total funding requests for lakes and waterways is $2,953,296 with only $234,000 available funding from the 2% occupancy tax that goes toward protection of lakes and streams. The other 3% of the occupancy tax is designated toward promotion of tourism.

Wendel said a committee to study the boat fee could include members from fishing associations, boat clubs, elected officials, and travel and tourism, “What we’d be looking at is an annual fee. What that fee is is yet to be determined. But you purchase a sticker. The hopes are.. could we work with marinas could we work with other agencies that put the boats in and out, or working with local establishments. Again, we have a couple places that sell fish licenses every weekend. So, working with our businesses around Chautauqua Lake to provide those stickers for people, if they’re coming in for a day, for a week, and understand what that fee would be.”

Wendel said the county still needs to determine how the committee is implemented in terms of whether it needs legislative approval to appoint members or not.

Should a recommendation to create a boat user fee be approved by the Chautauqua County Legislature, it would still require Home Rule approval from New York State in order to be implemented.

State Assemblyman Andy Goodell, who was present at the meeting, said given the legislative calendar, if this moves forward this is something that likely wouldn’t be acted on by the state until 2024 for implementation in 2025.

View slideshow from the Boat User Fee Meeting.

Tune to Community Matters tonight at 5:00 p.m. to hear the Boat User Fee Informational Meeting.

County Legislature Chairman and Chautauqua Lake Protection & Rehabilitation Agency Chair Pierre Chagnon addresses crowd at CLPRA Meeting (January 19, 2023)

The concept of a Chautauqua Lake Tax District is dead in the water.

Members of the Chautauqua Lake Protection and Rehabilitation Agency voted Thursday night before a crowd of nearly 100 people to not recommend the formation of a lake tax district to the Chautauqua County Legislature.

The motion was made by Chautauqua Town Supervisor Don Emhardt, who said he thought the whole thing “got off to a bad start,” “And the negative publicity and the number of negative emails I’ve received over the last week, week and a half.. It wasn’t gonna pass. So, we might as well just call it now rather than going through another two or three years of making a final recommendation.”

The CLPRA was initially formed in 2018 and tasked with forming a lake protection and rehabilitation district.

County Legislature Chairman and CLPRA Chairman Pierre Chagnon said the agency has been working with consultants, Barton and LoGuidice, on a possible structure of a tax district to be presented to the state and, if approved, then sent to the County Legislature.

He said that changes with the motion made by the CLPRA members to stop the process where it’s at, “…And make our recommendation to the legislature not to pursue a district. That motion was carried by a majority of the (CLPRA) agency members. So the agency’s task, which it was tasked by the (County) Legislature to make a recommendation, is complete.”

Chagnon said he thinks this outcome happened partly due to the discussion changing from generalities about there being a fee or a tax to discussions of what the fee might be for different tiers or parcels, “And then it started to become more of a reality to people, other than a generality, of what this could be to the property owners. And I think that that reality, I know from talking to at least a couple of agency members, that realization, that reality really opened their eyes and changed their view of the whole process.”

Chagnon said with their task complete, the CLPRA is considered dissolved.

He said the County could look at other lake funding options like a boat fee, but that would still require approval from the state.

Spending by local agencies and municipalities on Chautauqua Lake efforts

The Chautauqua Lake Protection and Rehabilitation Agency is expected to make a recommendation on a new taxing district and tax fund to address lake issues at its meeting Thursday.

Freshwater Future of Michigan, whose mission is to be a “catalyst for community action that strengthens policies designed to safeguard the waters of the Great Lakes region,” put out a press release on the expected action by the CLPRA at the agency’s meeting on Thursday, January 19.

According to Freshwater Future, the proposed Chautauqua Lake tax district would tax property owners throughout the watershed even though a survey for resident input on this new tax was only sent to lakefront and lakefront access property owners. They criticized the processs, saying there is no clear long-term plan for how to use the proposed new tax revenue to return the lake to health.

At the last public meeting held by the CLPRA, consultants from Barton and LoGuidice went over three lake funding options that included a tiered flat fee, equivalent residential units, and a formula based fee. Other funding options could also include a near-lake district tax, a watershed/drainage district tax, a user impact fee and a boat user fee.

After a funding mechanism is selected, a fourth public information meeting will be held in February 2023 to present the findings.

The CLPRA’s meeting will be held at 5:00 p.m., Thursday, January 19 in the Legislative Chambers of the Gerace Office Building in Mayville. It is open to the public and will be livestreamed on the County’s YouTube page.

Public information meeting held by the Chautauqua Lake Protection and Rehabilitation Agency (December 1, 2022)

Several dozen people attended the third public information meeting on options for funding a potential Chautauqua Lake District.

Consultants from Barton and LoGuidice went over three funding options that included a tiered flat fee, equivalent residential units, and a formula based fee. Other funding options could also include a near-lake district tax, a watershed/drainage district tax, a user impact fee and a boat user fee.

Barton and LoGuidice Environmental Scientist Jack Williams said a legal analysis determined that a county-wide tax could not be done as local funding mechanisms must be based on the benefits achieved by lake improvements or the impact to Chautauqua Lake. As not all communities are located within the watershed for Chautauqua Lake, by law they’re not considered as receiving direct benefits or having direct impacts on the lake.

The next steps will include the Chautauqua Lake Protection and Rehabilitation Agency reviewing feedback and then selecting a funding mechanism in January 2023. A fourth public information meeting will be held in February 2023 to present the findings.

To view the presentations on the funding mechanisms or to provide feedback, visit bartonloguidice.mysocialpinpoint.com/chautauqua-co-lake-fund