Newbury, n.h.
Ted Tichy, of Milan, N.H., who was serving as chairman of the 11-member commission and had been on the panel for 18 years, said this week that he had filed papers for reappointment in April, ahead of the June expiration of his term.
Throughout the summer, Tichy said he received no word on the status of his application, despite attempts to contact the Governor’s Office.
“I tried calling the governor but got no response,” Tichy said. “I got a chance to see him and speak to him once, but I could not get a reply.”
“It came as a surprise he wouldn’t reappoint me,” said Tichy, a forester. “I think I was doing a good job and was backed by organizations like the Wildlife Federation.”
In late July, Sununu announced in a news release he had removed the wetlands permit extension from the Executive Council, but did not detail his reasoning.
“We have heard the concerns of the residents of Newbury, Sunapee and the surrounding towns. Enough is enough. This project has been debated for the last 20 years and it is time to put an end to this flawed plan,” Sununu said in the release, promising to find a “better solution.”
A week after Sununu made that announcement, the commission voted to write a letter voicing its opposition to the decision and urging the governor to reconsider.
“The Fish and Game Commission voted unanimously to write to you to express our serious disagreement with your decision to pull the wetlands permit extension for the construction of the Wild Goose public access site on Lake Sunapee,” the letter begins.
It goes on to say that $400,000 and countless hours already have been spent over more than 20 years on the site and blamed the delay on “a few wealthy individuals who have ownership on the shores of Sunapee and want to keep our sixth-largest lake as their own private domain.”
“To throw this away because of the selfish feelings of a few individuals should be a crime, as New Hampshire Statute states, ‘No individual or corporation shall prohibit public access to public waters.’ ”
“It not only is the best site, it is the only site that will meet the criteria as supported by the environmental assessment,” the letter reads.
Tichy signed the letter on Aug. 17, and a month later, Sununu nominated Eric Stohl, of Columbia, N.H., for Tichy’s Coos County seat on the commission.
Stohl, a former Republican state representative and retired lieutenant with New Hampshire Fish and Game, was confirmed by the Executive Council on Oct. 25, according to council minutes, and now is listed as the commission’s chairman.
Tichy said he learned of Stohl’s appointment from Glenn Normandeau, the Fish and Game Department’s executive director, and still hasn’t heard from Sununu’s office exactly why he was not reappointed to another five-year term.
Sununu spokesman Benjamin Vihstadt did not directly address whether Tichy was removed by Sununu because of the letter when asked by the Valley News.
“As with any aspect of state government, it is important to include a variety of different viewpoints and allow interested individuals the opportunity to offer their time and talents to New Hampshire,” Vihstadt said.
Despite Sununu’s decision, the Wild Goose site is still under consideration and, according to a Tuesday news release from the chairman of the Lake Sunapee Public Boat Access Development Commission, it remains a viable location.
The Lake Sunapee commission, which was created by Sununu in September to consider other access sites on the lake, is “charged with assembling a variety of perspectives in order to develop a new plan for development of the Wild Goose property and expansion of public boat access at Lake Sunapee that will be amenable to and be supported by relevant public and private stakeholders,” Chairman Neil Levesque said in the release.
As far as another public boat access, “everything is on the table,” Levesque said in a phone interview this week.
The commission is inviting the public to provide comment at its next meeting, set for 3 p.m. on Nov. 30 at the Newbury Town Offices. Prior to the meeting, the commission will visit the Wild Goose site and the state beach, which is located a few miles north on Route 103.
There is a public boat access at the state beach, but it would have to be enlarged to accommodate more and larger boats because parking is limited and the short channel from the ramp to the lake is narrow and shallow.
“We want as much input and as much dialogue as we can from all the stakeholders to see if we can come up with a resolution,” Levesque, a Concord resident, said on Tuesday. “We believe that is how it should be done.”
Levesque, who runs the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at St. Anselm’s College, said the commission’s work will conclude with a report in March.
“We will recommend what we see is in the best interest of the state,” Levesque said. “We have got to solve this problem and come up with a solution.”
State Rep. Peter Hansen, R-Amherst, believes Wild Goose is the solution.
“To my way of thinking, it is the best site,” he said.
Hansen said he plans to introduce legislation in the upcoming session to appropriate $2 million in bonds for construction and operation of the public boat access off Birch Grove Road, where Wild Goose is located. Funding in the capital budget for the project in the last legislative session was killed in the Senate.
Hansen, who noted he does not own a boat and has no personal interest in increasing lake access, said he was perturbed by the way Sununu put an end to Wild Goose.
“I didn’t appreciate the way it was done,” Hansen said on Monday. “(Sununu) did not allow the permit renewal to go to the Executive Council, so he is solely responsible for killing this. It was in direct opposition to the RSA and that bugs me as well.”
Hansen’s Wild Goose proposal currently is a legislative service request and has not been assigned a bill number, which he said may not happen until after the boat access commission delivers its report.
Included in the appropriation would be at least $150,000 to make safety improvements at the intersection of Route 103 and Birch Grove Road, something that state Rep. John Cloutier, D-Claremont, said is critical for his support.
“I support more access to the lake in principle but highway safety has to be improved before I would support (the bill),” Cloutier said.
He believes the commission’s report will be the determining factor in whether both the House and Senate vote to support Hansen’s bill.
In a letter to lawmakers advising them he was about to introduce his bill, Hansen said he was disappointed he could get only one co-sponsor but sounded determined to push forward.
“We need all the support for this bill we can muster and if that includes rank-and-file members of the various organizations twisting the arms of their senators and House members to become co-sponsors and supporters of our cause, then so be it,” Hansen said.
Success, he said, depends on grassroots support to the governor and representatives.
Asked whether he could support expansion at the state beach, Hansen scoffed. “Propellers and swimmers don’t mix.”
Patrick O’Grady can be reached at pogclmt@gmail.com.
