DEC Announces Reopening

Of Portlandville Boat Launch

PORTLANDVILLE – A $40,000 project to enhance a cartop boat launch site on the Susquehanna River just upstream from Goodyear Lake is now complete, DEC Regional Director Keith Goertz announced today.

Improvements to the existing boat launch include an expanded parking lot, which can now accommodate up to eight cars, construction of an informational kiosk, and installation of a new universally accessible dock system that will allow for safer and easier access to the water for launching and retrieving cartop boats.

“Goodyear Lake is a local gem with abundant wildlife and a diverse sport fishery,” Goertz said.  “It’s also one of the 50 access projects improved recently under Governor Cuomo’s initiative to enhance outdoor recreational opportunities for all New Yorkers.  This new project will allow individuals with physical impairments to launch a canoe or kayak using the new dock system.”

A legislative grant of $15,000, obtained by state Sen. Jim Seward, R-Milford, funded a portion of the project. DEC funded the rest of the project and provided all the labor for the upgrades.

“Local sportsmen, along with many others who travel to Otsego County to enjoy our celebrated waterways and terrific fishing, will benefit from the improved boat launch,” Seward said. “Canoeists, kayakers, and others have always enjoyed paddling on Goodyear Lake and the Susquehanna River, and I was pleased to partner with state and local officials to develop this safe, environmentally sound access point.”

The boat launch area is heavily silted due to recent floods and is very muddy at low water, thus the need for a dock system to allow boaters to launch and retrieve boats in deeper water. With the ever increasing costs of travel, non-powered boating is becoming more popular as is public demand for free and improved waterway access.

This site across Route 28 from Schoolhouse Road.   Another project, the Crumhorn boat launch, is a couple of miles upstream and on the other side of the river; it has reportedly elicited some resistance from town officials and conservationists, who say it is on an insufficiently patrolled stretch.  There have also been concerns about increased use.

The Otsego County Conservation Association and the Goodyear Lake Association have had an interest in improving public access at this site for a number of years and worked with Senator Seward to secure partial funding for the project. ENEL Green Power North America owns the underwater lands and provided permission to install the floating dock system.