York Supes Table Cabin Creek Restrictions for More Discussion

By Sam Thrift Wednesday, September 21, 2011

The York County Board of Supervisors decided Tuesday to table a proposed no wake zone on Cabin Creek, an area with 16 waterfront properties off York Point Road. Residents are split on whether to regulate boaters who use the body of water in their backyards.

A no wake zone, according to the county, means boats and jet skis would have to operate in the creek at “the slowest possible speed required to maintain steerage and headway.” Speeds that would create a wake, swell or displacement wave would be prohibited. The county couldn't enact the zone; any request would have to be made by the board to the state's Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.

Six residents lining the creek, who live closest to its mouth, requested the no wake zone, while seven residents who live on or near the end of the creek opposed the new rule.

“As the water gets rougher, jet skiers will make their way up the creek at hazardous speeds,” said Tim Gelles, a resident who lives off the mouth of Cabin Creek. “We think [non-residental boaters and jet skiers] are really a safety issue, not the residents of the creek.”

Tim Whitlatch, who has lived off the creek for 17 years, also spoke to the board, using a picture of RFK Stadium – the Redskins' old football stadium - to show that the creek is large enough to let boaters continue to use the waterway as they have been without disturbing residents.

“The creek is about 400 to 600 feet long, about the size of RFK Stadium,” Whitlatch said. “There haven’t been any safety issues in the 17 years I’ve lived here.”

Jason Medford also opposed the no wake zone, saying that there are “little to no jet skis on the creek” to give the new rule merit.

“Do we really need Marine Police to monitor 16 responsible property owners?” Medford asked the Board.

District 3 Supervisor Don Wiggins, who also has waterfront property and has dealt with a similar situation in his own neighborhood, requested that the Board table the vote until he could meet with the neighbors of Cabin Creek.

Sheila Noll, who represents district 2, asked the residents who came to the meeting Tuesday night if they were concerned with the environmental issues that come with a wake. One resident said it wasn’t a factor because the grounds along the creek are already eroding.  

Wiggins plans on inviting all of the Cabin Creek property owners to discuss the policy, then bringing the resolution back to the Board of Supervisors for a vote either next month or in November.

You can see what is on the Board of Supervisors agenda before every meeting by clicking here.