Tag Archives: Stonington Town Dock
New Ice Machines Help Bolster Stonington Fishing Industry
“When the boats are fishing hard, each one will take 20 tons of ice per day, so we need the ice production,” said Gary Farrell, dockmaster of Stonington’s town dock, home to a commercial fishing fleet. “… Boats sit at the dock when they can’t get ice. You can’t go out and catch fish unless you got ice to put it on, so this is a big thing for us to get ahead of this.” On Monday, Farrell stood next to two new ice machines installed on the steel platform on the second floor of the dock’s icehouse, which are expected to alleviate the problem. Rob Smith, president of the Southeastern Connecticut Fisherman and Lobsterman Association, which rents the dock from the town, said the ice house was barely providing ice to all the boats in the Stonington fishing fleet — about 10 vessels total — and struggled to supply ice to other vessels. The 40-year-plus career fisherman keeps his vessel, the Carly Grace, a 54-foot dragger, in Stonington. Smith said the dock’s main revenue is selling fuel and ice. more, >>click to read<<14:16
70 years and counting: Stonington Blessing of the Fleet returns this weekend
Born in the Azores, an island in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Portugal, Manuel Raymond Rezendes’ grandfather and father came to the U.S. more than a century ago. Members of his family have worked in the fishing industry ever since. A third-generation fisherman, Rezendes said it is difficult to attract younger workers. It is a taxing career with early mornings and long trips, hard labor and extreme danger at times. He’s been struck in the chest with ropes, knocked overboard and has lived to tell the tale. Others, including his grandfather, Manuel “Fayal” Perry Rezendes, have not been so fortunate. “Fishing has been part of our family since as long as I can remember, and it is important to honor the traditions and sacrifices that came with that,” said Rezendes, who will serve as the grand marshal for the 70th annual Blessing of the Fleet this weekend. >click to read< 17:20
Bond Commission grant would provide aid for repairs at Stonington Town Dock
Members of the State Bond Commission have tentatively approved a $250,000 grant to aid with renovations of the North Pier at Stonington Town Dock. The commission voted unanimously to approve the request, which augments the $900,000 federal grant already provided to the town, will cover the entire remaining cost of the project and provides the community with money for needed rehabilitation work and upgrades at the Stonington Town Dock. “This is a huge win for Stonington because the money will support the continued operations of Connecticut’s Last Fishing Fleet. >click to read< 09:01
Digging out at the Stonington Town Dock
Fishing boats tied up at Town Dock are blanketed in snow after the blizzard that buried the region over the weekend. A deckhand aboard the F/V Heritage clears snow from the decks on Sunday, January 30, 2022. Area residents began the process of digging out from the blizzard that buried the region on Saturday. four photos, >click to view< 07:43
Stonington fishermen say windfarm developer not responding to their concerns
Joe Gilbert, who has a fleet of four commercial boats based at the Stonington Town Dock, said he met with John O’Keefe, head of marine operations for Ørsted, in March to discuss the “vast” concerns that he and other fishermen have ranging from potential environmental impacts to spacing in between turbines. The meeting, which lasted several hours, was productive with O’Keefe taking copious notes, Gilbert said. “I thought it was the beginning of an open dialogue between the wind developer and the fishermen,”,, Gilbert said he never heard back from O’Keefe about how Ørsted plans to address the issues, even after following up multiple times with him and other company officials. Eventually, he and a group of Stonington fishermen were offered a meeting,,, >click to read< 21:05
Designs for Stonington Town Dock pier to be presented Aug. 29
The town will present possible designs to protect the south pier of the Town Dock at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 29, at the La Grua Center in the borough. According to the announcement for the event, “community leaders initiated a project to evaluate the condition of the South Pier and develop plans to ensure that this asset is in good repair for the future.” The pier is leased by the Southern New England Fisherman’s & Lobstermen’s Association, who dock their boats there and use its facilities. >click to read< 13:30
Connecticut: New dual landings law intended to benefit local fishermen
A bill introduced by state Sen. Heather Somers, aimed at easing regulations preventing local commercial fishermen from landing catches in multiple states on the same trip, has been signed into law by Gov. Ned Lamont. The law currently in effect requires fishermen to designate their catch for a specific state and offload the catch in that state, even if the fishermen were licensed in multiple states and regardless of whether the catch was made in federal or state waters. Fishermen had to make multiple trips per week far offshore to make each catch designated for each state. >click to read< 08:55
Photos – Offloading a cod catch at Stonington Town Dock
Alex Newhall, of Stonington, unloads the catch from the Heritage, a trawler out of Point Judith, at Gambardella Wholesale Fish Dealers at the Stonington Town Dock. Newhall is a crew member on the Heritage. Harold Hanka, The Westerly Sun >click to view<16:21
Skates, bait for lobsters, unloaded at Town Dock in Stonington
Geal Roderick, of Mystic, captain of the lobster boat Pocahontas, unloads skates that he had just purchased at the Stonington Town Dock on Thursday. The skates, a deepwater fish similar to rays, will be used as bait in the 300 pots that Roderick intended to set over the next few days. Roderick also crews, as needed, on his father’s boat, the Stacy and Geal. Harold Hanka, 3 photos, >click here<18:51
More fluke, less sea bass, but no difference for frustrated CT commercial fisherman under 2018 quotas
East Coast fishermen will be allowed to catch more summer flounder and not as much sea bass as last year, under new quotas proposed by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council and Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission. But Stonington fisherman say the effects of the changing quotas will be nominal, and they will continue to advocate for an overhaul of the quota system, which they say has been unfair for decades. click here to read the story 21:54 
As Stonington’s fishermen age, a new effort to preserve their memories
Half of the people that walked into the tent at the Stonington Town Dock Sunday afternoon, it seemed, could point out a relative in one of the photos on the wall. A collection of snapshots of a centuries-old fishing tradition in Stonington brought back members of the traditional fishing families — and some newcomers — to the old days, and carried a message for the present. Walter John Roderick stood in front of a picture of his father, Geal “Bait” Roderick, and his seven brothers, reflecting on the shrinking family of fishermen. “There’s fewer people left in the industry,” he said, counting six living members of the Roderick family still fishing and comparing it to the 60 family members once working on boats in the 1940s. “We were the kids,” he said. “Now I’m going to be 70 next month.” click here to read the story 10:47
Fisherman hoping bumper sticker will reel in Trump
The Stonington town dock once featured a dozen or more vibrant commercial fishing boats. Now, it’s down to three or four. “My revenue has gone down probably 75 percent,” says Joel Hovanesian, a fisherman for 45 years. “The ocean’s loaded with fish, but they don’t allow us to catch it,” said an aggravated Robert Guzzo, another longtime fisherman.”This year, we’re only allowed 120,000 pounds of fish,” said Mike Gambardella, a fish wholesaler, with businesses in Stonington and East Haven. When business was bustling, Gambardella Wholesale Fish would ship out 5,000 cartons, with 60 pounds of fish in each, every week. Now, on a really good week, it’s 300 cartons. Gambardella says the association is hoping the President listens and, at the very least, they can schedule a meeting with Linda McMahon, the former World Wrestling Entertainment head, who is now President Trump’s leader of the Small Business Administration. Video, read the story here 08:00
Further cut in fluke quota puts Stonington fishermen, wholesaler in peril
Imagine one of the breadwinners in a typical two-earner household is suddenly hit with a 26 percent pay cut. Then, just as the family has adjusted to the leaner budget, the same worker’s pay gets lopped another 30 percent. Their landlord already has reduced their rent, and the family has cut corners wherever they could, so how will they make ends meet now? That’s basically the question Mike Gambardella, owner of Gambardella Wholesale Fish at Stonington Town Dock, is asking himself. He faces a new 30 percent reduction in the supply of fluke, one of his main products, next year, following the 26 percent cut he’s already dealing with this year that’s cost him about $100,000 in revenue. It also forced him to lay off one of his workers and reduce pay for himself and his remaining six workers, and negotiate reduced rent on the building he rents from the town. “At this point,” he said Thursday, “we’re fighting a losing battle. If I lose another $100,000 next year, I can’t afford to stay in business.” The new 30 percent cut in the supply of fluke — also called summer flounder — was announced Aug. 15 by the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, which regulates fluke and other species for the East Coast along with a larger body, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, but the council basically has the controlling authority. Read the story here 11:14
Lobstermen Justin and Travis Maderia plan to sue Stonington officials over fire that sank their boat
Two brothers whose lobster boat was destroyed by fire at the Town Dock last November have informed the town they intend to sue a long list of municipal employees and officials because of the damage to their business. These include damages to business equipment and personal property, lost business opportunities and personal damages. Mystic attorney Michael Hardesty, who represents well-known local lobstermen Justin and Travis Maderia and their business Lindy Inc., served the town with the notice on Tuesday. The 43-foot Lindy Inc. burned and sank at the Town Dock during the early morning hours of Nov. 11, 2015, and was raised a few days later. The fire, which also damaged another boat tied to the Lindy, as well as some of the dock’s pilings and decking, remains under investigation by police and the state fire marshal. Read the story here 22:05
