Cedar Key boat launch fees to increase at end of the month, some fisherman upset with change
CEDAR KEY, Fla. (WCJB) - Fishermen who frequent Cedar Key pay a boat launch fee, and at the end of the month, they will be paying even more.
“You’re going to have a lot of fishermen who won’t come here,” shared Charter Fishing Captain Jimbo Keith.
The daily fee will now be $20 instead of $16, and the annual pass is rising from $192 to $321.
City officials say this is due to increased costs of maintenance and improvements they hope to make in the near future.
“The boat ramp was paid for with federal grant money, and I think a lot of people see that and say, well, why is the local fee so much cheaper than the out-of-towners, and I think they have a big problem with that,” Keith said.
Keith is on the island six days a week and has been making a living from his fishing charter business for 19 years.
“If it needs to be done, it needs to be done, if the city thinks that’s what it needs,” shared Keith.
A sign near the boat ramp currently says no cleaning or disposal of fish at the marina area, but city officials say with this new price increase, they will add a fish cleaning station for public use.
Along with that, they’re looking to add a more automated launch pass system, expand the outer ramp, complete additional dredging of the inner marina, and double the current boat parking capacity. But some people aren’t sold.
“They’ve been talking about that for over a decade,” said Charter Fisherman Jason Clark.
Clark is another fisherman who is not happy with the price increase.
“I think that it’s going to draw some people not to come here, at this point, which could affect the charter business in the long run because I get a lot of clients who come here, fish with me a day or two, and then take their own boat out,” Clark shared.
Other places people might go include along the Suwannee River, which is free for parking and launching.
But both Clark and Keith say they’re not going anywhere, and they hope for those promised improvements.
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