12/09/2016
On December 8, 2011 at a public meeting hosted by LaGuardia Community College, a small clique ended elections at the LIC Community Boathouse (Victoria Olsen, a crony of John McGarvey, said to view her as a "benevolent dictator"), ended fiscal transparency, wrongly asserted that the fiscal conduit Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club owned the LICCB, and began a campaign of bullying and rumor mongering that culminated in a wave of secret meetings and expulsions.
At that same meeting the much smaller Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club, through attorney Gerald Dunne, served a lawsuit against me, to shut down this page. Despite my numerous attempts to settle in exchange for a restoration of elections and fiscal transparency managed by a trusted third party like Waterfront Alliance, the GDCC insisted on a federal trial. The case was CV 11 5985. Dunne tried to intimidate me and was foul mouthed in the very halls of the courthouse. Judge Pamela K. Chan paused the trial to chastise Dunne for being disrespectful to me (he was stupid enough to put some of his bullying in emails).The Gowanus Dredgers Canoe Club lost on both counts: the GDCC does not own the LICCB and this page does not infringe on the LICCB trademark.
Sadly the LICCB has yet to return to good governance. Former Chair Ted Gruber was responsible for much of the toxic culture, but his "expulsion for life" this year was decided in secret meetings without due process. And really, "expulsion for life" from a community boathouse? Louis Kleinman of Waterfront Alliance was never elected as Vice Chair of the LICCB but served in that role honestly and with competence and generosity. There was no justification for his summary removal from that position without any public process or communication with him. Other volunteers were banned for years for their association with Gruber, again without any due process. This in unjust and absurd. These actions were taken by John McGarvey, who claims to be Chair of the LICCB without election. Indeed, at the trial he dismissed the idea of elections and said leaders were chosen from within his clique because he or she "seems cool."
Indeed, the previous Chair told me that he simply handed the title off to McGarvey. This summer McGarvey used LICCB boats outside of programs to participate in an event that mixed copious alcohol with boating, a clear violation of common sense, insurance policies, and American Canoe Association standards. See photos here.
LIC Community Boathouse volunteers, you deserve better. Demand elections and financial management monitored and executed by a trusted outside group. Lawyers Alliance for the Public Interest or the NY State Attorney General might offer guidance.
I look forward to a happier, more inclusive, successful year for the LIC Community Boathouse in 2017.
