Save Fort Morgan Pier Project

My name is John Citrano, I have been a member of the forum for over two years, but this is my first post.
As many of you already know the Fort Morgan Pier is set to close down indefinitely on the first of next month. It would be a shame to lose such a wonderful resource.
We live in the Huntsville area and only make it down there 2 or 3 times a year, but we have fished the pier many times.
There is not a lot that I can do up here to make people aware, but there is an effort to save and make repairs to the pier ongoing.
Janet Kynard, founder of ithappensinalabama.com, has set up a GoFundMe account for donations to save the pier.
The account can be accessed through a link in the ithappensinalabama.com site or simply by a google search of Save Fort Morgan Pier.
ItHappensinAlabama.com is also on facebook and twitter, but I do not do either of those. Maybe someone else can provide a link through them.
Every little bit will help, but if you can't afford to donate please spread the word about the effort.

Thank you to every one in advance.

Noble cause!

Save Fort Morgan Pier Project by Janet Kynard - GoFundMe

I am also in north Alabama. It would seem like a good project for the local Rotary Clubs to look at if anyone has access to a Rotarian in the area....

I hope they have more luck with this project than I have in trying to get attention focused on the closed Perdido Pass fishing access for handicapped people. All I have received from the State Of Alabama Tourism Department is polite agreement that it needs to be addressed.

Closed indefinitely: Will anyone save the pier at Fort Morgan? | AL.com

Article does a good job of highlighting the complexities of this issue.

Be sure and vote in the poll!

:-(

Baldwin County Commission balks at saving Fort Morgan pier | AL.com

Quote:

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By Thyrie Bland | tbland@al.com
Email the author | Follow on Twitter
on October 22, 2014 at 9:15 AM, updated October 22, 2014 at 11:23 AM

BAY MINETTE, Alabama -- The Baldwin County Commission won't be saving the popular fishing pier at Fort Morgan State Historic Park.
The pier closed Sept. 2 because the Alabama Historical Commission fears its rotting pilings makes it unsafe for public use. The Historical Commission doesn't have money to pay for pier repairs or for the future upkeep of the pier.
County Commission Chairman Skip Gruber was hoping the county would pay for the pier repairs and take on the chore of maintaining it. He said Tuesday, "I don't think the commission wants to tackle that right at this moment."
That's because county Engineer Cal Markert told the commission during a recent meeting the pier needs to be replaced -- not repaired -- and the cost to do so would be between $800,000 to $1 million.
"The decking board was good, but you couldn't use it," Markert said. "You couldn't take up all the pilings without tearing all that up."
Historical Commission staff estimated a cost of $250,000 to repair the pier.

RELATED: Cast a wider net to fix Fort Morgan's fishing pier

The Historical Commission also asked the Alabama Department of Conservation, which maintains a boat launch next to the pier, about paying for repairs to the pier. The department told the commission it can't afford to do so.
Stephen McNair, the Alabama Historical Commission's historic sites director, said he plans to talk to Gruber about the County Commission's decision and then map out a plan for what to do next. He said one option is to ask the Baldwin County Legislative Delegation for financial help.
McNair said in the meantime the pier will remain closed to the public.
"We don't have any intention of removing the pier," he said. "We would like to keep what we have in place in preparation for the eventual repairs."
Janet Kynard, founder of the event website It Happens in Alabama, started an online effort to help save the pier, which included a campaign to raise funds for repairs. The campaign has ended due to a lack of donations.
"It is with sadness of heart that we have decided... to return all donations," Kynard said in an email. "Our board has decided that our energy, efforts and time is better spent in other areas."
Gruber said he is hopeful that the pier will eventually be reopened and plans to stay involved in trying to save the pier.
"I wish we could have done something," he said. "It's just that sometimes you just can't quite do it."

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DANG,
Turned into a political hot tater. Every gubmint entity is walking away from it.
I imagine none of em has any money to tear it down either, so it will just stand there and rot.
I wish they'd just hang a sign on it "USE AT YOUR OWN RISK". It's still plenty good enough to fish off of.
DANG.

Why not lease the pier and have them run it?

How about using some of the BP money instead of paying out for ALL the false claims!!!

That is a good idea. It is a revenue stream for for somebody. I always saw people on there everytime I would go by. Its not as used as the state pier but pretty active.