The back of The Breakers, photographed in 2008 while still under construction
A proposed marina attached to The Breakers condominium development is sparking a discussion about Sheepshead Bay’s shrinking navigable lanes, and the project will be on tomorrow night’s Community Board 15 agenda.
The owners of The Breakers complex at 3128 Emmons Avenue (near Ford Street) submitted plans to the Department of Environmental Conservation to create a 23 slip marina as an accessory to the existing 75 residential units. The plans are to be reviewed and either rejected or approved by the department alongside the Army Corps of Engineers.
But the potential impact of a private marina on the local captains navigating the already clogged Sheepshead Bay is drawing the attention of the Community Board.
Community Board 15 Chairperson Theresa Scavo said the project’s paperwork states that it will involve an excavation and fill in navigable waters.
“For me, that’s a red flag,” she said. “The bay is already narrowed by silt” causing some boats to get stuck in the muck during low-tide.
Courier-Life reports that “waterfront watchdogs” are similarly worried that construction on the project could push more silt and debris into the bay’s already filled channels.
“If they disturb the sand it’ll hurt the rest of the bay,” Charlie Coudouzos, Sheepshead Bay Yacht Club member, told the paper. “I used to sail my boat with no problem. Now you can’t sail a boat with any kind of draft because they keep running aground.”
Scavo said she’s also worried about the future use of the proposed slips. The developer’s plans say the slips will be used solely by residents of the development, and not for use by outside interests.
“A third of the people own a boat?” she said. “I think I know one person who has a boat. So to say a third of them own boats, I don’t know about that.”
She said she’s concerned about what would happen if the owner couldn’t fill those slips.
“What would you do with them? I’d rent them to anyone who came along to get my money back.”
It’s not the first time Community Board 15 has tackled a proposed marina development. Scavo says three or four years ago, the owners of La Mer Villas came forward with a similar project – sparking similar concerns. After the Board, alongside a number of local civics, became vocal about the plans to the DEC and Army Corps of Engineers, the project was denied.
The Community Board, though, has no jurisdiction over approving or rejecting the project. Instead, Tuesday night’s debate will review the plans and culminate in a decision to either endorse the project or not. If they decide the public’s concerns overwhelm the developer’s private interests, they’ll write a statement to the DEC and Army Corps voicing the complaints.
Also on the agenda for tomorrow night’s meeting are four public hearings. Three are for home enlargements at 123 Coleridge Street, 2216 Quentin Road, 2512 Avenue R. The fourth is for a legalization of previous alterations at 2302 Avenue S, and an application for a special permit to construct an addition.
The meeting takes place 7 p.m. in the Faculty Dining Room of Kingsborough Community College.
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