Title
Maritime Task Force “Strategy: Strengthening the Maritime Industry” - For the purpose of adopting the Strategy of the Maritime Task Force.
Body
CITY COUNCIL OF THE
City of Annapolis
Resolution 26-21
Introduced by: Mayor Buckley
Co-sponsored by: Alderman Paone, Alderwoman Tierney,
Alderwoman Finlayson, Alderman Schandelmeier, Alderman Gay,
Alderwoman Pindell Charles, Alderman Savidge
A RESOLUTION concerning
Maritime Task Force
“Strategy: Strengthening the Maritime Industry”
FOR the purpose of adopting the Strategy of the Maritime Task Force.
WHEREAS, the Waterfront Maritime Zoning Districts were adopted in 1987 to address the development pressures on the Annapolis Maritime Industry and to preserve the Maritime Industry’s presence in Annapolis.
WHEREAS, since 1987, the Annapolis Maritime Industry has evolved and is now confronting new and different challenges that necessitate a recalibration of the City’s maritime districts to ensure that Annapolis continues to thrive as a boating center for the Mid-Atlantic.
WHEREAS, Policy 7 of Chapter 3, Land Use and Economic Development, of the 2009 Comprehensive Plan acknowledged “the importance of the Maritime Industry to Annapolis’s character, identity, and economy, [and the need to] strive to ensure the Maritime Industry’s sustained health and viability.”
WHEREAS, on October 12, 2020, the City Council in recognition of Annapolis’s unique Maritime Industry that provides 3000 maritime jobs, tremendous training and employment opportunities for the City’s youth, and potential for even greater future vitality of our waterfront communities, established the Maritime Task Force to undertake a comprehensive review of the waterfront maritime zoning districts, assess the current and future needs for the industry to continue to prosper, and identify recommendations to strengthen the Maritime Industry.
WHEREAS, the Maritime Task Force was comprised of a wide array of volunteers from maritime industry businesses, maritime district property owners, residents, and representatives from public interest organizations who worked together tirelessly to forge a dynamic future for the Maritime Industry and the continued evolution of the Waterfront Maritime Zoning Districts.
WHEREAS, the Maritime Task Force met throughout the past nine months with the Planning Commission, City Council, stakeholders from the Maritime Industry, resident organizations, businesses, and non-profit organizations, with a vested interest in the resilience and sustainability of the Maritime Industry in the City.
WHEREAS, the Maritime Task Force achieved a consensus among its members aimed at protecting the Waterfront Maritime Zoning Districts while allowing them to evolve by recruiting, retaining, expanding, and supporting the Annapolis Maritime Industry for the future, and also by providing new opportunities for residents and visitors to experience the waterfront.
WHEREAS, the Maritime Task Force created a strategic approach that establishes a resilient and sustainable future for the Waterfront Maritime Zoning Districts by:
1. prioritizing and incentivizing the land intensive working boat yards in Annapolis to create a working maritime ‘Hub’ for the Mid-Atlantic region,
2. supporting “Complementary Maritime Uses” to enable the maritime industry to be competitive,
3. committing to an Annapolis Maritime Industry Fund and Programs to directly support the maritime industry while creating job training programs,
4. incentivizing public water access and recommending a comprehensive Public Water Access Plan, and
5. ensuring that the strategic approach continues to strengthen the Maritime Industry by imposing annual evaluations to determine the success in implementing the intent of Resolution R-46-20.
WHEREAS, Findings and Recommendations are a clear deliverable of the Maritime Task Force as outlined in the City Council Resolution R-46-20, and as included in the Task Force’s publication “Strategy: Strengthening the Maritime Industry”, attached hereto and incorporated herein, that was presented to the City Council on June 15, 2021.
WHEREAS, the Planning Commission held several public hearings related to the progress and final version of the “Strategy: Strengthening the Maritime Industry”. At the July 15, 2021 and August 5, 2021 public hearings, the Facts, Findings, and Recommendations of the “Strategy” were discussed and Deliberations were concluded on August 23, 2021.
WHEREAS, by a vote of 5-0 on August 23, 2021, the Planning Commission endorsed the information, findings, recommendations, and proposed implementations in the “Strategy: Strengthening the Maritime Industry” and recommended that the City Council adopt the “Strategy”.
NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE ANNAPOLIS CITY COUNCIL that the Maritime Task Force “Strategy: Strengthening the Maritime Industry” attached hereto and incorporated herein be adopted and implemented immediately to forge a path forward to grow Annapolis’s working Maritime Industry.
EXPLANATION
Underlining indicates matter added.
[Strikethrough] indicates matter stricken.