The U.S. Coast Guard is making plans to downgrade the status of the Milford Haven Coast Guard Station in Mathews from a small boat station to a seasonal station, open only six months a year.
According to a spokesperson for Sen. Mark Warner, the Coast Guard has included the downgrade as part of its FY 2022 budget request.
Warner’s office is in contact with the Coast Guard about the proposal because he wants to ensure the public is not negatively affected by any changes, said the spokesperson in an email, adding that Virginia’s other representative in the U.S. Senate, Tim Kaine, is also reaching out to the Coast Guard about the matter and that both senators have asked Congress to increase funding for the Coast Guard in the coming fiscal year.
Lt. Cmdr. Katherine M. Blue, public affairs officer for the Mid-Atlantic Region, said in an email that the Coast Guard is proposing to “suspend off-season operations” at Milford Haven because “the current Coast Guard boat station footprint was large...