Parking at Riverside boat launch pavilion questioned

NEW LONDON – The availability of parking for those who rent the Riverside boat launch pavilion in the city of New London was questioned at the June 2 New London Parks & Recreation Committee meeting.
Ginger Sowle, director of the New London Parks & Recreation Department, told the committee that the Wolf River Area Patriots contacted the city with a request to allow attendees to its annual picnic this summer to use boat launch parking spaces. She added that the group is renting the pavilion in the park near the boat launch.
City ordinance would not necessarily allow the group to use those parking spaces, Sowle said.
“It’s a city ordinance,” Sowle said. “I can’t make those decisions, so I think that it’s important that we clarify that, not only for them, but also for any other group that would want to use the facility in this way.”
Chris Martinson, secretary of the Wolf River Area Patriots, told the committee that this will be the 13th year that the group will host its annual picnic at the Riverside boat launch pavilion. The only year during that time it didn’t host its annual picnic there was in 2020 when the park was closed.

Over those 13 years, Martinson said there has never been a complaint regarding the group’s annual picnic, there have always been open parking spaces left during the picnic, and the group has always left the area in good condition.
Martinson pointed out that the picnic would be on a Tuesday night, not a weekend.
“Even though it’s summer, it’s nice weather, there are a lot of people boating, but it’s never been full for boaters,” Martinson said.
The picnic is a free event that is open to the public, Martinson added.
He said last year was the first time no parking signs were posted in the area.
“The city was kind enough to not do any enforcement that night,” Martinson said.
The group applied for a special event permit this year, at the request of the city, Martinson said.
“We’d rather not move the event,” Martinson said.
He added that the group is willing to purchase “a bunch” of daily parking permits for the boat launch parking spaces.
Ald. David Dorsey said he was not opposed to allowing those who rent the pavilion to be allowed to use some of the parking spaces and pay for parking permits for additional parking spaces.
“They’re making really good sense when you have something to rent there, but you can’t park but on the other side of Highway X,” Dorsey said.
He added that whatever the city allows for this event, it allows for others who rent the pavilion.
“It has to be cut and dry, and this is the way we do it,” Dorsey said.
Ald. Robert Besaw said he was concerned that if an exception were to be made for the Wolf River Area Patriots event, that exception would need to be applied to others renting the pavilion, but those other events could be during a fishing tournament.
“Those other people aren’t launching boats,” Besaw said. “So, you’re telling somebody that put money into the boat launch that now, all of a sudden, you can’t use it because these other people down there that had no, say, skin in the game, for the boat launch. That’s my only problem.”
Ald. John Faucher added that the boat launch parking lot is a user-funded parking lot.
“The DNR grant money that came to build that came out of boat registration fees,” Faucher said.
He added, “If we’re going to make a policy, we need to really think it through.”
“Don’t you think it’s kind of ridiculous, if you’re renting out a shelter house and you’re not offering anybody a place to park, that’s just asinine. You gotta give them some place to park,” Ald. Larry Hutchison said.
Martinson agreed.
“It doesn’t seem logical that you’d rent out that pavilion to a group and then not do something to make parking available, even if you charge an extra fee,” Martinson said.
Faucher added, “If you have a structure that size, you should have to have so many saved parking stalls, or at least allow it or permit it temporarily, or something like that. I’m 100% for that.”
The committee didn’t formally vote but agreed to honor the Wolf River Area Patriots parking request for its annual picnic this summer. It also agreed to discuss the parking situation at the boat launch for those who rent the pavilion.