Waterford/East Lyme Shellfish Commission - Minutes - 03/19/2026

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     Waterford-East Lyme Shellfish Commission

                                                  Regular Meeting Minutes
                                       Thursday, Mar 19, 2026

                                     East Lyme Town Hall, 7:00 pm


      Members present:  Peter Harris, Larry Tytla, Patrick Kelly, Marcia
      Benvenuti, and Paul Spakowski.
      Members absent:  Rick Kanter, Tom Bowlen, Fred Wise
      Guests: Warden Dave Simpson

   1) The meeting  was  called  to  order  at  7:00  pm  and  a  quorum  was
      established.

   2) Secretary’s minutes from Jan 15, 2026 regular meeting was approved  on
      a motion by Mr. Kelly, seconded by Mr. Spakowski, motion vote 4-0, Ms.
      Benvenuti abstained.  Feb 19, 2026 meeting was cancelled.



   3) Treasurer’s report was presented by Mr. Kelly and approved on a motion
      by Mr. Tytla, seconded by Mr. Spakowski, motion vote 5-0.



   4) Warden’s comments : Mr. Harris  reported  he  has  met  with  the  new
      wardens and is coordinating training with DA/BA.   Mr.  Tytla  made  a
      motion, seconded by Ms. Benvenuti to allocate up to $1000 for boat and
      engine maintenance expenses as well as safety equipment  for  the  new
      wardens.  Motion approved 5-0.



   5) Old business :
        a. DA/BA e-mailed Mr. Harris about a replacement  rain  gauge  with
           the hopes of installing the gauge in the next few months.


   6) New business  :
        a. Dock application for  216  Niantic  River  Rd,  Waterford,  Dave
           Provencher from Shore Design PLLC described the project.  Motion
           made by Ms. Benvenuti, seconded by Mr. Kelly that  this  project
           will not adversely impact shellfish.  Motion vote was  2-2  (Mr.
           Kelly and Ms. Benvenuti voted to approve the motion, Mr.  Harris
           and  Mr.  Spakowski  voted  against  the   motion,   Mr.   Tytla
           abstained).  The motion was not approved.


        b. Dock application  for  28  Niantic  River  Rd,  Waterford,  Dave
           Provencher from Shore Design PLLC described the project.  Motion
           made by Mr. Spakowski,  seconded  by  Ms.  Benvenuti  that  this
           project will adversely impact shellfish.  Motion  vote  was  5-0
           The motion was approved.



        c. Mr. Harris announced an invitation for WELSCO to participate  in
           this year’s Earthfest to be held at McCook Point Park in Niantic
           on 16 May 2026.  Commission members will discuss further at next
           month’s meeting.




   7) Ex-officio comments : East Lyme ex-officio Cindy Collins was not  able
      to attend due to a schedule conflict.

   8) Correspondence : Mr. Harris  discussed  during  the  meeting,  various
      correspondence he rec’d related to the rain gauge  (agenda  item  5a),
      training of wardens by DA/BA (agenda item 4), and  the  invitation  to
      Earthfest (agenda item 6c).  Correspondence to  Mr.  Harris  by  Shore
      Design PLLC was discussed at the meeting for agenda items 6a and 6b.

   9) Public comment : No public comments were made..



  10)  Meeting was adjourned at 7:53 pm on  a  motion  from  Mr.  Spakowski,
      seconded by Mr. Tytla, motion approved 5-0.



Respectfully submitted,


Peter Harris