I saw Dr. Edward Hoffer’s comments in the Jan. 27 Issue of Sippican Week and I would like to offer him some unsolicited feedback. First I applaud your willingness to step forward and run for Select Board. In many ways you are a brave man and without qualified folks willing to serve, many small towns such as Marion would run aground.

As a lifelong Marion resident and having served on the Finance Committee, Recreation Committee, as Town Moderator and in other contributory ways, I am also the CEO for a $1.5B tech company and therefore, I fully understand the necessity for watching expenses. It must be engrained in every decision that is contemplated. 

That being said, your comments about the harbormaster’s office being overstaffed prompted me to offer the following. I would suggest you proceed with factual data and not hunches or campaign-grabbing headlines.  Let me share with you some data that often gets overlooked as it relates to the harbormaster’s office. 

The Marion Harbor Masters Office manages 1,400 moorings, 401 boat slips and racks and answered 226 calls for service in 2021. They also haul and launch 35 docks and gangways and maintain them in the offseason. They performed 876 pump-outs and oversee the safety of a burgeoning number of organized activities on the water such as races, regattas and sailing programs from the Beverly Yacht Club, Tabor Academy and Marion Recreation, as well as the fast-growing sports of kayaking and paddle boarding.  There are several more pieces of data that I that I could add to the list but I won’t belabor the point.

In addition to analyzing the data, I would encourage you to look behind the numbers. For instance, the multiple docks that require moving during storm warnings or the parking lot by the bandstand that requires regular maintenance, this work gets accomplished at zero cost to the town, as individuals at the HarborMasters office use their own personal heavy equipment to accomplish many of these tasks. I would also encourage you to look at the grant monies that the Harbormasters Office has worked hard to obtain over the years, most recently a $303,000 grant from the Seaport Economic Council. 

One could quickly make the argument that we are fortunate to have the talented and passionate individuals at the Harbormasters Office that we do and I believe that once you look at the data and meet the dedicated folks behind the numbers, you too will become an ardent fan. Best wishes in your pursuit of a seat on the select board. 

Jeff Dickerson

Marion