Paugus Bay Boathouse Collapse

[TiltonBB]

The boathouse collapsed Thursday afternoon just before 2 PM.

The boathouse, owned by Morin's Moorings, was used to store boats, lawnmowers, and fuel. It is (was) located to the left of Paugus Bay Marina.

https://www.laconiadailysun.com/news...3136283bb.html

[LIforrelaxin]

Well that is scary, the good news is it sounds like no one was hurt.
I wonder how long it had been since there was any type of work or inspection of the support structure for the boat house..

[tis]

Well, that is sad.

[8gv]

Do the submerged pilings get inspected occasionally?

It might have gone down due to other structural issues for all I know.

In FL, pilings can have a wood boring worm infestation that hollows out their insides.

It's a time bomb especially if the pilings are for a lift.

My friend lost a piling and that holed his boat and set it adrift.

The boat partially sank and was ultimately scrapped.

I had divers inspect and video my pilings.

There were many worm holes present.

The new pilings are wrapped in black vinyl sleeves to prevent this.

[fatlazyless]

Could be the the recent snow, slush and rain weighing down on a boat house in the lake? There's been three snow storms within the last seven days, and the last storm was like a giant slushy with rain and snow while the second storm had 12" heavy dense snow on the roof to absorb the increased weight of the rain.

[TiltonBB]

The Laconia Sun has more information about the collapse, the building contents, and another picture.

https://www.laconiadailysun.com/news...868e7af26.html

[ApS]

Originally Posted by 8gv

Do the submerged pilings get inspected occasionally?

It might have gone down due to other structural issues for all I know.

In FL, pilings can have a wood boring worm infestation that hollows out their insides.

It's a time bomb especially if the pilings are for a lift.

My friend lost a piling and that holed his boat and set it adrift.

The boat partially sank and was ultimately scrapped.

I had divers inspect and video my pilings.

There were many worm holes present.

The new pilings are wrapped in black vinyl sleeves to prevent this.

As shown in an earlier thread, I have a 48-year-old piling dock. The bark is still attached on some of the pilings.

Ice does push the pilings around, but I've been able to re-adjust them.

https://www.winnipesaukee.com/forums...56&postcount=5

[WinnisquamZ]

Question, will they be able to rebuild? If so, same foot print? Current codes?


Sent from my iPhone using Winnipesaukee Forum mobile app

[TiltonBB]

Originally Posted by WinnisquamZ

Question, will they be able to rebuild? If so, same foot print? Current codes?
Sent from my iPhone using Winnipesaukee Forum mobile app

As far as I know they can rebuild and it would have to conform to current codes. The state will not let you change anything on a boathouse so the same dimensions would be the maximum. The only thing I think they would let you do is reduce the size, but I doubt the owners would want to do that. Length, width, and even height are considered dimensions that cannot be expanded.

[BroadHopper]

Originally Posted by TiltonBB

As far as I know they can rebuild and it would have to conform to current codes. The state will not let you change anything on a boathouse so the exact dimensions would be the maximum. The only thing I think they would let you do is reduce the size, but I doubt the owners would want to do that. Length, width, and even height are considered dimensions that cannot be expanded.

Length and width on the current location are pretty much cut in stone. Height, well that is another story. I see many buildings around the lake that add a story or two.

[tis]

You can go up a story on the same footprint on a house but not on a boathouse.

[TiltonBB]

Originally Posted by tis

You can go up a story on the same footprint on a house but not on a boathouse.

I made an inquiry to DES about raising my boathouse 3 feet so that the entrance door would accommodate a boat with an arch. The answer was basically "No chance"

Same length and width, same roof, just a little bit higher. I haven't figured out how height affects wetlands but I am still thinking about it!

[tis]

Originally Posted by TiltonBB

I made an inquiry to DES about raising my boathouse 3 feet so that the entrance door would accommodate a boat with an arch. The answer was basically "No chance"

Same length and width, same roof, just a little bit higher. I haven't figured out how height affects wetlands but I am still thinking about it!

They actually made someone in Wolfeboro removed the little top they put on it. I thought it was cute but apparently DES didn't.

[John Mercier]

It doesn't appear that any of the structure will be salvageable.
Being historic, will they want it to be changed?

[Susie Cougar]

Originally Posted by TiltonBB

I made an inquiry to DES about raising my boathouse 3 feet so that the entrance door would accommodate a boat with an arch. The answer was basically "No chance"

Same length and width, same roof, just a little bit higher. I haven't figured out how height affects wetlands but I am still thinking about it!

Maybe you would block a neighbor’s view?

[TiltonBB]

Originally Posted by Susie Cougar

Maybe you would block a neighbor’s view?

Nice thought, but it had nothing to do with that. They never looked at my property or even considered the idea. It was "No" right from the start.

You may remember the DES court case a few years ago about the boathouse in Moultonborough. The DES lost at the State Supreme Court level. It was discussed extensively on this site.

From the Laconia Sun:

"In its May 22 ruling, the Supreme Court rejected the DES argument that it had the right to restrict the structure to the 17-foot height of the original boathouse.

“We agree with the Corrs that DES did not have the authority to limit the height of their structure,” the court said in its ruling.

Furthermore, the court wrote in the unanimous decision, "DES has failed to demonstrate, particularly in the circumstances of this case, how height has any relation to the protection of the public waters and the adjacent shoreland."​

https://www.winnipesaukee.com/forums...ough+boathouse

[Blue Thunder]

Article describing the salvage of the 103 year old Woody inside the boathouse…


https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/01/...winnipesaukee/

[webmaster]

The owner of the boathouse sent me this by email:

I’m the owner of the boathouse that that fell down in Lakeport Harbor and would like to answer questions and correct misinformation reported. Glad the Fair Haven survived in good condition. The owner of Fair Haven maintained his own unit. I was assured by him that the work he performed was more than adequate to support the boat. It was the only boat supported year round in the boathouse. A signed agreement by him agreed to be liable for any damage or alteration to the boathouse. I’ve been assured by experienced structural contractors that snow had nothing to do with its collapse but may have been wind or a shifting of the boat being stored there. A licensed Structural Engineer will make that determination. No fuel what so ever was ever stored in the boathouse, except what was in the fuel tanks of boats or equipment stored there. The boathouse was 95 years old. As is the norm today facts matter little.

[chillininnh]

I was working my regular shift at Irwin's and just happened to be near the fuel dock outside when this structure failed. It sounded like a house imploding!!! Glad to see the antique boat suffered minimal damage.