[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Alexandria Bay 4-29-2016 by L.L. No. 2-2016. Amendments noted where applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meaning indicated:
- ANCHOR
- To secure a vessel temporarily to the bottom of a water body by dropping an anchor or anchors or other ground tackle from a vessel.
- AQUATIC EVENT
- Any public or private organized activity, including but not limited to a regatta, boat race, boat show, water skiing competition or demonstration, or fireworks display, which uses a defined area of the water for a set period of time.
- BEACH
- All public beaches (of all jurisdictions), private membership club beaches, and private homeowners' association beaches, as depicted on the Harbor Management Map.[1]
- BULKHEAD
- Any seasonal or temporary structure, except a building, positioned parallel to the shoreline, the primary function of which is to retain soil or any other material from eroding into a waterway or to protect the land from wave damage.
- CHANNEL
- Water areas specifically reserved for unobstructed movement of vessels and which may be marked in the water by aids to navigation. Channels are depicted on the Harbor Management Map.[2]
- DOCK
- Any structure, or fixed platform built on floats, columns, open timber, piles, or similar open-work supports, or cantilevered structures anchored to the shore, including piers and wharfs, and designed to provide access from the shore of the St. Lawrence River for swimming, boating or other recreational or commercial uses, and shall also include accessorial uses, including but not limited to boat slips and berths. All structural descriptions provided above, which are placed on the waterside of the mean high water mark, shall be defined as a "dock."
- DOCK, COMMERCIAL
- A dock or portion of a dock, operated for a fee such as, but not limited to, dock space for rent, lease or sale.
- DOCK, PRIVATE
- A dock, owned by the upland property owner for the sole use of the upland owner's personal benefit. Private docks shall not be used for any monetary gain such as, but not limited to, dock space for rent, lease or sale.
- FAIRWAY
- An area in the harbor, other than a federally or locally designated channel, commonly used as an open accessway between marine structures or designated channels, buffers areas, and mooring areas.
- FLOAT
- Any structure buoyant on the water surface affixed and secured in place to underwater lands which provides an offshore surface for swimmers or other purposes.
- HARBOR MANAGEMENT AREA
- All surface waters, inlets, and bays of the St. Lawrence River within the Village of Alexandria Bay as depicted on the Harbor Management Area Map.
- HARBOR MANAGEMENT AREA MAP
- The map adopted by the Village of Alexandria Bay as part of this Chapter.[3]
- LIVE-ABOARD VESSEL
- Any vessel used, designed, or occupied as a dwelling unit, business office or any commercial use, or for any private or social club of whatsoever nature, including but not limited to a structure constructed upon a barge while the same is moored or docked within the Harbor Management Area of the Village of Alexandria Bay.
- MARINA
- Any lot, building, structure or part thereof located on the waterfront and providing docking and secure mooring facilities for yachts, motorboats, sailboats and other marine vehicles or craft; includes the sale, rental and/or storage of marine and boating vehicles, as well as supplies, service, repair and other related facilities and/or operations necessary to maintain such craft.
- MOOR
- To attach a vessel to the ground or lands underwater by means of tackle so designed that, when such attachment is terminated, some portion of the tackle remains below the surface of the water and is not under the control of the vessel or its operator.
- MOORING or MOORING BUOY
- A floating object anchored to the lands underwater by means of tackle but not to the shore, to which a boat could be attached for waterside storage.
- NAVIGATIONAL AID
- Buoys, beacons, signs or other objects, buoyant or affixed to land or a structure, for the purpose of assisting in the safe operation of a vessel by marking obstructions to navigation or to direct navigation through safe channels.
- NO ANCHORAGE ZONE
- The zones designated by the Village of Alexandria Bay, as depicted on the Harbor Management Map, which are specifically dangerous or congested locations for the anchoring of vessels.
- PERSONAL WATERCRAFT or SPECIALTY PROP CRAFT
- A vessel which uses an inboard motor powering a water jet pump as its primary source of motor power or is powered by an outboard motor or a propeller drive motor, and which is designed to be operated by a person sitting, standing, or kneeling on, or being towed behind, the vessel rather than in the conventional manner of sitting or standing inside the vessel.
- PERSON
- An individual, partnership, corporation, association, and any other legal entity subject to the provisions of this chapter.
- SHORELINE
- The line of the shore as generally depicted on the Harbor Management Map.
- SPEED
- The speed of a vessel over the water's surface as measured in miles per hour.
- SCUBA AREA
- A water area designated on the Harbor Management Map as set aside for scuba diving.
- SWIMMING AREA
- A water area designated on the Harbor Management Map as set aside for swimming.
- UNREGISTERED VESSEL
- A vessel that is not registered as required by New York State law.
- VESSEL
- Includes every description of vessel and watercraft or other contrivance used or capable of being used as a means of transportation in or on the water, including aircraft and personal watercraft.
- VESSEL OWNER
- The person under whose name the vessel was last registered in accordance with the provisions of Title 46, United States Code, Chapters 121 through 125, or the New York State Vehicle and Traffic Law, or any similar statute of any other state or country and, in any other case, the last known owner or person who claims lawful possession of such vessel by virtue of legal title or equitable interest therein which entitles him/her to such possession.
- VILLAGE BOARD
- The Village Board of the Village of Alexandria Bay.
- WATER-DEPENDENT USE
- An activity which can only be conducted on, in, over or adjacent to a water body because such activity requires direct access to that water body, and which involves, as an integral part of such activity, the use of the water (i.e., commercial and recreational boating and fishing, swimming, marinas, facilities for shipping, and ferry landings).
A.
Dangerous operation prohibited. No person shall operate a vessel
at a speed greater than what is posted or cause the throwing of its
wake, so as to:
(1)
Endanger the life or limb of another person using the St. Lawrence
River under the conditions and having regard to the actual and potential
hazards then existing; or
(2)
Endanger a person on or operating another vessel or cause damage
to another vessel, structure, shoreline property or the environment,
or interfere with the free and proper use of the waters of any channel.
B.
Speed and noise of vessels.
(1)
No person shall operate a vessel at a speed in excess of that posted
by speed markers and shall not exceed five miles per hour when within
100 feet of the shore, a dock, pier, raft or float or an anchored
or moored vessel.
(2)
No person shall operate a vessel within 100 feet of any area marked
for public swimming, or skin or scuba diving, by the placement of
a regulation red diving flag, except a vessel being used to support
such diving.
(3)
No person shall operate a vessel at a noise level above the maximum
noise level designated in Article 4, § 44, of the New York
State Navigation Law.
C.
Identification and vessel registration. No person shall operate an
unregistered vessel upon the waters of the Village. Vessel operators
shall identify themselves and produce the vessel's registration
to Village, county, state or federal law enforcement authorities upon
request. Failure to produce such registration upon request shall be
presumptive evidence of the operation of an unregistered vessel and
a violation of this section.
D.
Required equipment. No person shall operate a vessel which does not
meet all duly adopted and published requirements of Article 4 of the
New York State Navigation Law and applicable federal laws and regulations
with regard to safety equipment to be carried or incorporated into
vessels of its type.
E.
Prohibited discharges. No person on or operating a vessel shall dump
refuse or garbage, or discharge treated or untreated sanitary waste,
into the water in violation of any Village, county, state, or federal
laws and regulations.
A.
No person shall operate a PWC within 500 feet of a designated swimming
area or the shore at a speed greater than 10 miles per hour, except
that such speed limit shall not apply when launching such vessel away
from the shore or returning to the shore.
B.
No person shall operate a PWC within the Village so as to knowingly
endanger the health or safety of another person or wildlife, and a
PWC shall at all times be operated in a reasonable and prudent manner
in accordance with Article 4, § 73-a of the New York State
Navigation Law.
No person shall conduct organized aquatic events without obtaining
an event permit for such event from the Village Board in addition
to any required New York State or federal permit.
No houseboat, boat or barge or other floating accommodation
to be used for residential living may be anchored or secured to any
dock, piling or shore within any surface waters, inlets, or bays within
the Village of Alexandria Bay for more than three days without a special
permit from the Village Zoning Officer. All floating residential accommodation
permits shall clearly state the following:
Public or private mooring is not allowed on any surface waters,
inlets, or bays within the Village of Alexandria Bay.
A.
No person shall anchor a vessel in the Harbor Management Area in
a no-anchorage zone so designated on the Harbor Management Map.
B.
No person may anchor a vessel for more than three days without obtaining
a permit from the Village.
C.
A person owning, operating, or in control of a vessel while at anchor
or properly secured may leave a vessel temporarily to go ashore, but
must be available to tend the vessel in the event of inclement weather
or other emergency. It shall be the vessel owner's and/or operator's
responsibility to remain clear of all anchored vessels and other structures.
A.
No person shall anchor or moor any float without a permit from the
Village Zoning Officer. An application for a float permit can be obtained
at the Village Clerk's office. All floats must be properly marked
and visible at all times during the day and night.
B.
Issuance of permits shall take into account safety, day and night
navigation, water depth and bottom conditions, tackle, access, and
compliance with the Local Waterfront Revitalization Program. No float
shall interfere with the use of channels or fairways.
A.
No person shall construct or expand any structure, including but
not limited to docks, piers, wharves, boatlifts, breakwaters, or jetties,
without obtaining approval or a permit in compliance with the Village
of Alexandria Bay Zoning Law, specifically the Docking Facilities
Law,[1] in addition to complying with all applicable New York
State and federal laws.
B.
Issuance of permits shall take into account safety, day and night
navigation, effects on natural resources, cultural resources and water
quality, public use of the water, and compliance with the Village's
Local Waterfront Revitalization Program.
The Village Zoning Officer, and any police officer or other
peace officer, are empowered to enforce the provisions of this chapter.
Every person in charge of a vessel shall at all times obey the lawful
orders of the Village Zoning Officer or a police or peace officer.
A conviction of a violation of this chapter shall be deemed
an offense and punishable by a fine of not less than $50 and not exceeding
$250, and/or imprisonment for a term not to exceed 15 days, or both
such fine and imprisonment for a first offense. A second offense within
a twelve-month period shall be punishable by a fine of not less than
$100 nor more than $350, and/or imprisonment for a term not to exceed
15 days, or both such fine and imprisonment. A third offense within
a twelve-month period shall be punishable by a fine of not less than
$200 nor more than $500, and/or imprisonment for a term not to exceed
15 days, or both such fine and imprisonment.
