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Gravel Pile Leaves Boaters High And Dry On NeshaminyBv VICTOR ODHNER Couricr-Times Staff WriterAlmost $1.6 million is being spent for a harbor and marina on the Delaware at the mouth of the Nesbaminy Creek. Most of the money is coming from state funds.But a gravel pile in the Nesh-aminy between the State Road and Route 13 bridges in Croydon is blocking boat traffic for hours each day. And not a cent is available to dredge it out.William Forrey, assistant director of state parks, said this may seem strange.“There’s a lot of money for the Neshaminy State Park Harbor,” he says, ‘‘but try to spend a penny of it on something else and the)'11 nail you to the wall.” Boaters Tied Down George Hackert, who runs Bridgewater Boatyard just upstream from the Route 13 bridge, and Frank Malone of Delaware Valley Marina on the opposite bank, say about 10,000 haulers have to adjust theirschedule to avoid low tide so they can pass.At dead low tide, they say, even an outboard can’t pass safely without waiting sometimes as long as an hour. For larger boats —around 20-footers — the wait can last for three hours.And low tide comes every 12 hours.Hackert can display a fine collection of propellers beaten ragged on the gravel.“A man comes out for a pleasure cruise,” Hackert says, “andgets this instead. A $15 repair-job isn’t pleasure. If it’s an aluminum propeller it’s a total loss, and he pays between $30 and $40 for a new one.“And damage on an outboard motor can run over $100. Think he’ll ever come back here?” Malone and Hackert say a channel 20 feet wide and 150 feet long would completely clear the Neshaminy. But who has the money?This Can Get Expensive “I do my own dredging, Malone says. “Once I had someoneelse do it and it cost me $2,800.He points to mud that makes part of his boatyard useless.“Topsoil from farms up-coun-ty,” he says.Then he points out a small green mountain on one side of the docking area. “I dredged that all up.” he says. “But when I run out of space, what then?Hackert blames it on the gravel pile downstream. If that were clear, he says, “half that soil would go on through instead of settling.”Some say a gravel barge sunk years ago and was never recovered. Whatever started the shoal, it’s not getting any better.Cites Boat Fee“Th3 state collects between $6 and $18 a year on each boat in the Neshaminy,” Hackert says, “and all this money is being spent on the big marina down there that’s going to compete with us little guys. They’ve been dredging down there day and night for two years.“The least they could do isclean up the creek and give us afighting chance.(Forrey says the marina may help private boatyard operators, since it may attract about 300 boats but would not provide repair facilities, dry storage or in-and-out service.)-I would suggest,” Forrey says, that if possible they start writing letters to Secretary Goddard of the Navigation Commission That may help start something, and they may get some action.”
Newspaper Details
Bristol Bucks County Courier
Bristol, Pennsylvania, US
Fri, Aug 12, 1966
Page 43
Full Page
Clipped by
Margaret R.
PA, USA 26 Apr 2025
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