Safety Rings, Ladders a Go for Port's Beaches, Breakwater

An agreement between Port Washington and the U.S. Army Corp. of Engineers approved during Tuesday night's Common Council meeting means new safety measures could be in place on the city's beaches and breakwater as early as the next couple weeks.

The 5-year agreement allows the city to install and maintain the safety equipment — which will include new life rings on North and South beaches and the breakwater, as well as safety ladders on the breakwater — with a $20 million insurance plan.

"I think it's well understood that this particular breakwater is old and (well beyond the need of repair)," City Attorney Eric Eberhardt said.

A collaboration of city groups will be responsible for the maintenance of the new equipment: city Park and Recreation staff will check the equipment on North and South beaches as part of their regular checks of those areas; marina staff will monitor the equipment on the breakwater; and Port Washington Police Reserve officers will conduct a weekly inspection of the functionality of the equipment.

Concern for the state of the breakwater is nothing new among city officials, but the effort to improve safety on Port's lakefront was boosted after the Port Washington Waterfront Safety Advisory Committee formed in light of drowning deaths in the city during 2012.

Not contingent upon the agreement approved Tuesday night but still part of planned safety improvements include educational signage as well as life jacket kiosk stations in the marina area.

Beyond that, officials said improvements will likely be ongoing, and the city attorney offered one such example.

"The initial pier safety devices would not include safety call boxes," Eberhardt said, "but stay tuned, that might occur in the future."