Harbor Management Commission - Minutes - 10/07/2026

Town of Waterford Harbor Management Commission 
Meeting Minutes of Wednesday, October 7, 2026 
 
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Town of Waterford Harbor Management Commission 
Meeting Minutes for Wednesday, October 7, 2026 
5:00 p.m. Police Department Training Room 
 
1. 
Establish a quorum and call the meeting to order. 
 
Chairman Hughes called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m. after establishing a quorum.  
Present were Commissioners Hughes, Buths, Jr., Jamroga, DeRosa, Arfi, Porter and 
Keatley.  Absent were Commissioners Wise and Crocker.  Also present was Mike 
Theiler from Jeanette Fisheries. 
 
2. 
Pledge of Allegiance 
 
3. 
Approval of the September 2, 2026, regular meeting minutes 
 
Motion made by Commissioner Jamroga, seconded by Commissioner Arfi to approve 
the meeting minutes as submitted.  All in favor, motion carried. 
 
4. 
Harbor Master Report 
 
Harbor Master Crocker was not present to give his report at this meeting. 
 
5. 
Correspondence 
 
Chairman Hughes reviewed recent correspondence with the Commissioners including a 
Facebook post regarding abandoned pulley poles at the corner of Third and Fourth 
Avenues.  A resident had complained that the poles are dangerous to swimmers and 
should be removed.  He has been in contact with Public Works who have offered to take 
away the rusty poles that have already been pulled from the water if someone from the 
Commission is willing to put them out by the road.  Chairman Hughes has tagged the 
pulley poles that are currently in the water for removal if an owner does not come 
forward to claim them.   
 
The Chairman has published a Public Notice to inform the public that the Harbor Master 
has begun checking moorings in the Waterford Harbor for 2026 delinquent mooring 
permits.  Unpermitted mooring will be stickered and are subject to removal by the 
Harbor Master at the expense of the owner.  All mooring gear that was pulled from the 
Waterford Harbor in 2025 and prior will be disposed of by the Harbor Master if not yet 
claimed by the owners. 
 

Town of Waterford Harbor Management Commission 
Meeting Minutes of Wednesday, October 7, 2026 
 
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6. 
New Business 
 
a. 
Application from DOCKO, Sound Engineering Associates, LLC, Mystic CT for 
dock modification located at 202-A Niantic River Road, Waterford, CCT. 06385 
 
The applicant has not attended the past two meetings to discuss the project with the 
Commission members.  Chairman Hughes offered to investigate the project to 
determine the extent of the work requested to determine if the project will negatively 
impact the Harbor Management Plan.  He requested this item remain on the agenda for 
discussion next month. 
 
b. 
Review and vote to accept and forward the 2026 Harbor Management 
Commission Annual Report requested by the Finance Department.  
 
Chairman Hughes has drafted the 2026 Annual Report and will send the document to 
the Commission members for input and approval at the next regularly scheduled 
meeting. 
 
c. 
Draft the meeting dates for the 2027 regularly scheduled meetings and forward 
the dates to the Town Clerk as requested. 
 
The Commission has secured a meeting room at the Town Hall for all the 2027 regularly 
scheduled meetings.  The Commission will meet at 5:00 p.m. on the first Wednesday of 
each month except for meeting dates that fall on holidays.   
 
Motion made by Commissioner Jamroga, seconded by Commissioner DeRosa to 
approve the 2027 meeting schedule and to file the schedule with the Town Clerks office.  
All in favor, motion carried. 
 
7. 
Old Business 
 
a. 
Update regarding the 2026 mooring and pulley pole applications to date. 
 
The 2026 boating season has wrapped up with 173 moorings processed this season.  
There are two applications pending payment that the Commission hopes to receive this 
month.   
 
b. 
Establish a date for the Commission to go out to tag delinquent moorings for 
removal. 
 

Town of Waterford Harbor Management Commission 
Meeting Minutes of Wednesday, October 7, 2026 
 
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Chairman Hughes suggested October 14, 2026, at 8:00 a.m. to go out to tag moorings 
in Jordan Cove and the Niantic River.  Commissioners Jamroga, Buths, Jr., Porter and 
Hughes volunteered to go out to tag the delinquent moorings they find with Deputy 
Harbor Master Miller.   
 
c. 
Update regarding progress to date with the approval of the amended Harbor 
Management Plan and maps. 
 
Chairman Hughes received a notice from Commissioner Wise indicating that he plans to 
meet with the Town Attorney to discuss the amendments to the Plan.  Commissioners 
Porter and Arfi stated they would like to attend the meeting with the attorney with 
Commissioner Wise as they are on the sub-committee and have been involved in the 
process to amend the Plan.  Chairman Hughes suggested the updates made be first 
presented by the subcommittee to the Commission followed by a meeting with the Town 
Attorney. 
 
d. 
Update regarding the Mago Point Dock project. 
 
Chairman Hughes stated that Gary Schneider has been in contact with DOCKO to 
discuss the improvements to the dock.  The Town received a one hundred twenty-five-
thousand-dollar grant to use toward the improvements, and the Town matched the grant 
with an additional one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars for a total of two hundred 
and fifty thousand dollars secured for the improvements.   
 
8. 
Public comment relating to Harbor Management Commission business only 
 
Mike Theiler, owner of Jeanette Fisheries was present to speak in favor of an online 
mooring permit system, stating that it is a more efficient approach to issuing mooring 
and pulley pole permits that allows contractors and the Commission access to more 
precise information and up to date real time information.  Mooring applicants and 
contractors can download documents online and pay fees via credit card.  He believes 
that the Waterford Harbor Management Commission would benefit greatly from the use 
of the software.  Chairman Hughes stated he will investigate the program and thanked 
Mr. Theiler for his input. 
 
9. 
Adjournment 
 
There being nothing further to discuss the Commission adjourned the meeting at 5:49 
p.m. 
 

Town of Waterford Harbor Management Commission 
Meeting Minutes of Wednesday, October 7, 2026 
 
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Respectfully submitted by 
 
Audrey Ulmer, Recording Secretary for the Town of Waterford Harbor Management 
Commission