Harbor Commission Chairman Sam Amari has ordered three more pieces of docking to add to six sections of public docks along the Merrimack River, off Washington Street.
As WHAV reported earlier this week, Haverhill city councilors were asked to approve transferring of $8,000 from a waterways account to pay for the purchase. The sections at the William “Captain Red” Municipal Docks are aimed to accommodate the newly approved Yankee Clipper Tours and the return of Plum Island Kayak.
Mayor James J. Fiorentini’s office said Thursday Amari ordered the sections and they be should installed within a few weeks. The mayor said he also asked for additional lighting and security cameras at and around the public docks and directed police to work with the Commission.
A winding accessibility gangway leads to the docks, which are popular for fishing and allow boaters to tie up their private crafts and Plum Island to store its kayaks.
The Commission previously gave unanimous approval to plans for Newburyport-based Yankee Clipper Tours to begin offering day and nighttime river cruises out of downtown this summer. The boat, with room for 35 to 44 passengers, is expected to make its way here in mid to late June.
“The boat is a 30-foot, aluminum catamaran deck boat, and the model I’ll follow is basically the same as I do in Newburyport, which is one-hour public trips, 90-minute sunset cruises and private charters and some pro bono work for nonprofits and environmental groups,” Capt. Paul Aziz, owner of Yankee Clipper Tours, told the Commission in January.
This summer will be the third year Plum Island Kayak will be operating from the Washington Street docks, where it also has a ticket booth.