Affected Boat Owners Notified After Settlement of Lawsuit Brought Against Town
Huntington - The lawsuit brought by the Villages of Huntington Bay and Lloyd Harbor against the Town of Huntington, temporarily preventing the Town from issuing mooring permits for boats moored within 1,500 feet of Incorporated Village shorelines, was settled on June 21, lifting the temporary restraining order on the issuance of such mooring permits.
A temporary restraining order requested by the Villages of Huntington Bay and Lloyd Harbor had been in place since December 30, 2020, preventing the Town of Huntington from issuing mooring permits for boats moored in waters within 1,500 feet of Village shorelines.
The settlement allows the Town to issue permits for boats moored within 1,500 feet of the shorelines of Incorporated Villages as it had done for more than 20 years, except in the Village of Lloyd Harbor where permits by the Town had not been previously issued.
Since the settlement, the Town of Huntington Harbormaster has processed all applications for moorings in the affected waters and mailed a notification to boaters wishing to moor their vessels within 1,500 feet of Village shorelines advising that the owners check with the respective Village(s) to ascertain whether, in addition to a Town mooring permit, there is a requirement to apply for an additional permit from the Village. A map of the affected waters was provided to each applicant by the Town.
The Town has revised its mooring permit application and is in the process of revising the Town Code to acknowledge that mooring permit applicants must follow all Village laws in addition to all Federal, State, and Town laws. The Town is also in the process of drafting a Local Law exempting underwater lands in Lloyd Harbor from the mooring permit requirement.
The Villages of Huntington Bay and Lloyd Harbor have agreed not to file any other lawsuit against the Town regarding the permitting of boats moored within 1,500 feet of Village shorelines. The Village of Huntington Bay has agreed to introduce a law establishing a Vessel Regulation Zone; once enacted, the Town's Director of Maritime Services will, upon request of the Village, provide contact information for any mooring permittee whose boat is moored within such 1,500 feet or ask the permittee to relocate an improperly moored vessel.
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