February 16, 1999

Good news and bad news. The good news is that our clubhouse is nearing completion. The bad news is that our Pier 25 landlord, Manhattan Youth, has just rescinded permission for us to bring the clubhouse to Pier 25.

The call and letter from Manhattan Youth arrived at our club about 2 weeks ago. The reasons initially given were "shifting political winds" but these have now evolved into our clubhouse being "too large" and "blocking the view."

Let me first assure you that if we are unable to bring our new clubhouse to Pier 25, this will not affect the basic operation of our club. We will continue to provide the same service as last year and there will be improvements, including a larger fleet of boats. But the potential of our club to provide even more opportunities for members could be held back in the short run.

The issue of our clubhouse is not dead. We may be able to regain approval but it will be an uphill battle and we need the vocal support of members. The first step is a Community Board 1 Hudson River Park Committee meeting on Thursday, March 4. Our barge is on their agenda and we need their approval to move forward. It is important that as many members as possible show up for this meeting. It will be at 49-51 Chambers St, Room 709. The committee begins meeting at 5:30 p.m. and we should be on the agenda around 6:30 p.m.

It would help our clubhouse if you could attend this meeting. The Community Board needs to know that their decision will affect real people. We also need volunteers who live or work in the Community Board 1 district to speak about how the club makes it possible to enjoy sailing in the harbor. If you can attend, please let me know at mike@myc.org or (212) 786-3323 (we need to let them know how many people to expect so they can choose the right size room). After the meeting, we will gather in a local watering hole.

It was back in November that we originally received permission from Manhattan Youth to bring the barge to Pier 25. Since then, the political landscape involving the Hudson River Park Conservancy has changed. When we expanded to Pier 25 last summer, we knew we were entering a political arena. The Hudson River piers are a hotbed of activism as you may have read in newspapers. There are people opposed to the entire Hudson River Park. And among park supporters, there are struggles about who gets what piece.

Our expansion to Pier 25 was not greeted with universal applause because there were other groups trying to get this facility. Although our operation at Pier 25 was a major improvement over what existed previously, not everyone agrees. After the season ended, we came under criticism for being an "exclusive club" which limited public access. When our opponents heard we planned to bring in a barge, they began working behind the scenes and have now created enough resistance that Manhattan Youth sees the barge as a potential liability.

Sometimes I feel as if our club is on a long voyage. First we re-introduced recreational sailing to the harbor many years ago. That required overcoming many obstacles. Each year since, we have introduced new programs to make it easier and more enjoyable to sail in this city. Some programs have been easy, others hard. Our clubhouse is being hit by an opposing gale. But we are sailors and should be able to adjust our sails as best possible. Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated and I invite you to contact me.

Now back to sailing. Racing team captains should register for their boats by the end of this month. You can register on-line at the club website. You can also register on-line for sailing on Miss Manhattan from Newport this summer. In the fall, Miss Manhattan will travel to the Chesapeake which will offer a new sailing venue for members.

The last newsletter announced the launch of our club website. The correct address is www.myc.org. If you tried to log on without the "www," you would have received an error message. Please try again using the full address. The website will be a great source of information. A new feature is "Notices to Members" which will allow members to post notices to each other.