Want to Lease Your Own Portion of the Bay? Now You Can

The Suffolk County Shellfish Aquaculture Lease Program in Peconic Bay and Gardiners Bay will hold an informational meeting on Tuesday, December 9, for those interested in leasing bay bottom for the cultivation of shellfish.

The 2015 lease application cycle will be open to private oyster grant owners who wish to cultivate species other than oysters on their grant parcels.

Department of Economic Development and Planning staff will be discussing the lease application process, and will be available to answer any program-related questions. Staff from the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, Bureau of Marine Resources will also be in attendance and will be discussing the regulatory permit requirements, which apply to all Suffolk County leaseholders.

The meeting will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. on December 9 in the first floor conference room of the Cornell Cooperative Extension Kermit W. Graf Building, 423 Griffing Avenue, Riverhead.

Prospective lease applicants should contact Ms. Susan Filipowich at susan.filipowich@suffolkcountyny.gov or visit suffolkcountyny.gov.