Fishermen, Swampscott YC at odds over Fish House use

SWAMPSCOTT – Local fishermen and the Swampscott Yacht Club are preparing to face off again regarding the town-owned Fish House.The Fish House was built in 1895 on land that was deeded to the town for use by working fishermen. The SYC, which is a private club, has leased the second floor of the building from the town for more than seven decades.In June 2004, the SYC and the town signed a five-year lease, which costs the club $12,000 a year and means it assumed financial responsibility for cleaning and stocking the public restrooms in the building.A few years ago the fishermen and the SYC clashed over the last remaining vacant stall for working fishermen. The Fish House is the only working municipal fish house left in the country and local fishermen were outraged when the town leased the stall on the second floor to the private yacht club. The club is currently using the locker for storage.SYC Vice-Commodore Robert Sharp said the club developed a long range plan in 2005 to improve the facility, which included installing a kitchen and a porch on the second floor of the building.Representatives of the SYC presented the plan to the Selectmen in September 2007 when it asked the town to consider picking up the tab for an elevator to allow handicapped access to the second floor of the town-owned building. Because funding for an elevator would have to go through the Capital Improvements Committee and is not something that could be done immediately due to fiscal constraints, Sharp said the SYC decided to focus on the porch aspect of the project.”We changed our focus to what can be accomplished in the short term,” he said. “We’re hoping to go before the selectmen with the plan for the porch this spring.”In the meantime, Sharp said the SYC is committed to working with the fishermen, Swampscott Historical Society and other parties that have a vested interest in the Fish House.Fisherman Ed Desrosrer said some fishermen have expr-essed concern over losing access if the porch is built in a way that extends beyond the original footprint.”It will impact us only if pilings are put in the sand,” he said. “Pilings in the sand would limit what little access we have down there.”Mike Gambale, a local fisherman, shared Desrosrer’s concerns.”The original plans called for pilings to hold the deck up in an area that we use,” he said. “We wouldn’t have been able to access the pier to unload our lobster traps. But I think the Yacht Club is trying to work with us. We just want to make sure we have access because the building was intended for us by working fishermen.”Desrosrer said added changes being proposed to the historic building should be made public and the community as a whole should be allowed input.”Fishing is a part of the fabric of the community and an important part of the history of the community,” he said. “You preserve what you have or it’s lost forever. The Fish House belongs to the town and the people in town. People should know what is planned and have a say in whether they want to preserve the character of the historic building.”Sharp said SYC has received a lot of positive feedback on the proposal but he also admits there has been some concern.”Change is always difficult,” he said. “We wouldn’t change access the fishermen or public have. The fishermen are our neighbors and we want to make sure what we do on the second floor doesn’t affect the first floor (which is occupied by working fishermen.)”