Syracuse.com - Upper Salmon River public fishing rights in trouble? DEC responds to rumor

[HuntingNY-News]

<p>

Despite the assurances, critics of the DEC and the developer remain concerned.

</p>

<p><br />Altmar, N.Y. - There's no truth to the rumor that a wealthy developer plans to eliminate the public fishing rights along a popular stretch of the upper Salmon River, the state Department of Environmental Conservation and a spokesman for the developer said this week.</p>

<p>Despite the assurances, critics of the DEC and the developer remain concerned.</p>

<p>The area in question is on the north side of the river, stretching about 500 yards from a bridge in Altmar, which marks the lower end of the river's fly fishing-only area, and continuing downstream to Ellis Cove.</p>

<p>"There's no truth to that matter," said David Lemon, regional fisheries manager for the DEC's Region 7. "The public fishing rights along that stretch is ours forever and it's not going to change."</p>

<p>Tom Fernandez, a spokesman for the Woodbine Group, the Syracuse-based developer mentioned in the rumor, is well aware of the controversy that it has stirred up. It was prompted by Woodbine's purchase last fall of two acres on the north side adjacent to the Altmar bridge last fall for $40,000. The land, though, has no shoreline property.</p>

<p>Woodbine recently opened the deluxe Tailwater Lodge on the grounds of the former Altmar-Parish-Williamstown Elementary School on the river's south shore along the stretch. The lodge privatized and closed to the public about 1,500 feet of shoreline fishing on the former school district property. </p>

<p>Could something similar happen on the north side? Is last fall's land purchase a foreshadowing of what's to come?</p>

<p>"There's been a couple of websites have been going nuts about this. It's not true," Fernandez said. "If we tried to do something like that it would be public relations nightmare."</p>

<p>James Kirtland, of Pulaski, co-founder of the Lake Ontario Tributary Anglers Council (LOTAC) and a member of the Oswego River Guides Association, is skeptical. The rumor started as a posting on the LOTAC website. </p>

<p>"Everyone in the area would love to see something from the DEC in print about this -- a promise," he said. "It only takes one judge to overturn anything these days."</p>

<p>Mark Sabia, president of the Oswego County River Guides Association, added that the DEC's public fishing rights along the stretch "are not set in stone. There has been litigation about this going on for 10 years," he said.</p>

<p>Lemon responded that Sabia is confusing the public fishing rights issue with ongoing negotiations concerning transference of the north shore property's ownership from its current owner, National Grid, to the state. </p>

<p>He said the public fishing rights and conservation easements were successfully secured by the state in late 1993. Public fishing rights are permanent easements purchased by the DEC from willing landowners, giving anglers the rights to fish and walk along the bank, usually a 33-foot strip on one or both sides of a stream, according to the DEC website.</p>

<p>The rumor about Woodbine, according to the LOTAC website, originated from "an email from a credible person with knowledge of the situation" who noted anglers stood to lose public access on the north side of the river "just like we lost it on the south side."</p>

<p>"National Grid owns all the other land/lots on the north side, except the New York State-owned parking lot. If somebody gets in bed with National Grid the PFRs (public fishing rights) will be lost to Ellis Cove," the email stated. "This is urgent, and immediate steps are being taken. The DEC states PFRs are 'permanent,' but they already dropped the ball on the south side and powerful lawyers, etc., can surprise the public."</p>

<p>Kirtland said the email came from John Wilson, of Syracuse, who has a "fair amount of information about the Woodbine Group." The LOTAC website urges readers to contact Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Ken Lynch, the regional director for the DEC's Region 7. Wilson could not be reached for comment.</p>

<p>Lemon stressed the main difference between the situations on the north and south shores of the river along the stretch is that the DEC never owned the public fishing rights on the south side on the school property - but does own them for the entire span on the north side on the National Grid land.</p>

<p>Kirtland said the privatization and exclusion of the public from prime fishing stretches along the Salmon River has been proceeding at an alarming rate in recent years.</p>

<p>"We just don't want to see things turn into a European situation where wealthy landowners own the shore and you have to pay dearly to fish it," he said. " The Salmon River has always been a place where the average guy can fish for trophy salmon and trout and have access with a state fishing license."</p>

View the full article on The Syracuse Outdoors Blog