The Port of Brookings Harbor. | Photos and graphics provided by the Port of Brookings Harbor Office

The Port of Brookings Harbor Commission unanimously agreed to block vehicles from driving onto the North Jetty last week due to a number of ongoing issues, including homeless camps, trash dumping and public safety concerns.

While the recent homeless camps sparked the vote, ​Port Manager ​Gary Dehlinger told the Outpost that — on multiple occasions — people have also driven off the narrow jetty, trapping their vehicles on the rocks below.

“If you drive out there, there's no way to turn around,” Dehlinger said. “In the past, people’s vehicles have fallen off the jetty and gotten stuck.”

Concrete blocks the North jetty path.

This roundabout plan of action to impose restrictions on the North Jetty, located in the middle of the harbor, was implemented due to the Port’s inability to enforce ordinances on the jetty, as it is owned by the US Army Corps of Engineers.

Following the vote, two concrete blocks were placed at the jetty entrance, which still allow for public access by foot. A locked bar gate will eventually replace the blocks in order to keep the jetty accessible to the US Army Corps of Engineers.

Through the same vote, the Commission also agreed to the permanent removal of the crabbing dock located near the tip of the North Jetty due to the possibility of fishing lines affecting boat traffic in the narrow waterway.

The Commission stated that the dock removal will require a barge crane, and therefore the project won't be completed anytime soon. Instead, the Port will wait for a more substantial project — like piling replacement — before a barge crane is brought in. At that time, the dock will also be removed.

“It could happen in a year or later,” Dehlinger said. “I  don’t foresee any [barge crane] projects within the next year, but something might change.”

While a removable metal ramp currently connects the dock to the jetty, Dehlinger said that there are no current plans to remove the ramp. As long as the dock and ramp are in place, crabbers will still be able to throw their lines in the water.

When the jetty dock is removed, the fishing pier next to U.S. Coast Guard station Chetco River will be the harbor’s only public fishing dock.

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