Plans for a Tall Ship event in Greenport in 2015 are starting to take shape.
Greenport Mayor David Nyce gave an update on how plans are progressing at Monday night’s village board work session.
Nyce said he’d had a preliminary meeting with the steering committee; he said those who had served on the steering committee in 2013 were contacted first to see if they’d be interested in signing on again.
Also, Nyce said, he reached out to incoming Greenport School Superintendent David Gamberg, to coordinate a curriculum for students that would allow them to learn about the history of the Hermione before the event — and open the door for volunteers from the school for the festivities.
A highlight of the event will be the maiden voyage of the rebuilt Hermione, the vessel that brought French general Marquis de Lafayette to the United States during the Revolutionary War, he said.
Nyce said the Hermione would set sail from France to the U.S. between April and May, head to New York City for July 4, and then come east to Greenport for the holiday weekend, docking on Sunday and Monday in the village.
The mayor also outlined budgeting for the event and said revenue and expense reports would be generated in much the same way as they were during the last event.
The possibility still exists, Nyce said, for a Tall Events event in New London that could be held simultaneously, with some cross promotion.
So far, though, he said, Greenport is the only port scheduling a Tall Ships event for the holiday weekend. Nothing will be planned for New York; the Hermione is only stopping there because the organizers of the event have an office there, he said.
Moving forward, Nyce said he would like to report monthly to the village board about what the steering committee has done. The steering committee, he added, has asked to be authorized by the village board to “work within a structure to set up events and allocate village assets — short of making any financial decisions, which would be done by the Business Improvement District and the village board.”
Minutes will be taken at steering committee events and emailed to the village board, Nyce said.
Trustee Mary Bess Phillips asked that budget issues be reported upon separately so the board can have a clear picture of what’s going on each month.
Nyce said the village treasurer’s department would be handling finances for the events, the same as last time. “We are the bank for the event, but the event is supposed to pay for itself in ticket sales and sponsorships,” he said.
The BID would reach out to the business community for sponsorships, Nyce said. “Given the additional time we have, this should be a very successful event.”
“I undertand that we’re the bank, but to what degree has the BID promised to be a part of that bank?” Phillips asked.
Nyce said the BID would be allocating “a great deal” of that fiscal year’s budget but the specifics still needed to be discussed; a one-time additional revenue tax could be collected from the district, he said.
In recent months, Nyce said Tall Ships America had reached out to tell Greenport officals that a request for proposals submitted last fall had been accepted for a program in 2015.
Nyce added that he will “likely not be in this position” at the time of the event, as he may not seek re-election when his term is up next year. He said the board would need to be “fully behind” the project, as it would take a lot of preparation and another mayor would likely be seeing it through.
