NEWPORT BEACH — The mooring management and harbor operations shift from Orange County Sheriff’s Department to the city of Newport Beach has been a fairly smooth transition as Harbormaster Dennis Durgan assumes his role.
Durgan took over the responsibility of overseeing more than 1,200 moorings from the Sheriff Department’s Harbor Patrol Division in July, with Newport Beach hiring 13 part-time harbor workers and obtaining two additional vessels.
The amount of foot traffic coming into Marina Park, where Durgan’s office is located, after the operational shift in management was unexpected.
“I think the job may be a little bit bigger than they anticipated,” Durgan told The Log. “I don’t think it was anticipated quite as many people coming to our office to pay their mooring rates. We are still in charge of the Marina Park dock rentals, and so we got all that traffic coming to our office as well.”
Durgan, who is an avid sailor, real estate agent and Newport Beach resident, said the city received about 150 applications for part-time harbor work. The pool of applicants was narrowed down to 30 and then the final 13 were selected.
The harbormaster said his department has an amazing team consisting of lifeguards, sailing instructors, law enforcement...
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One Response
Wait, now that Dennis is the “harbormaster” who do we call when my boat catches fire or when there are two people beating each other up on a boat or a boat speeds by, or when someone steals my boat or crashes into my boat or my passengers are drowning or my boat loses its motor and is heading towards the jetty. Never mind, I am going to call the actual Harbormaster, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department Harbor Patrol, people that are actually equipped to handle real emergencies. I will call Dennis when I find some trash floating around and leave the actual work to the professionals.