New Haven attorney Katharine Sacks, who was appointed receiver of the foundering Amistad America in August, taking command of Connecticut's ambassador tall ship, has been busy trying to put the tattered nonprofit back in order.

Judging by her first statement to Superior Court of services rendered, I would suggest that Attorney General George Jepsen made an excellent choice in recommending that Sacks be put in charge.

Sacks, it appears, is a quick study in learning how to manage a tall ship, everything from arranging for continuation of insurance to buying harnesses so the crew can climb safely in the rigging.

Amongst the dozens and dozens of tasks large and small Sacks reported accomplishing to the court, one struck me as especially indicative of her smart, resourceful and roll-up-the-sleeves approach to getting Amistad back in order.

While the ship was out sailing one afternoon, Sacks drove to the airport to pick up the new cook, among the new crew members she has had to interview and hire.

One thing that becomes clear in reading her account of services rendered is how atrociously things had been managed before, with little accountability or record keeping.

After discovering 10 cartons of records, many of them accounting-related, buried in a locked container, the new receiver sent them along to auditors who have examined the nonprofit's incomplete financial records.

She has also been dealing with all the unpaid bills, getting checks to crew members who went unpaid and arranging for newspaper legal notices for creditors on how to seek payment for the pre-receivership claims, of which there are apparently many.

Sacks even negotiated a reduction in the price of the legal ads placed in the New Haven Register, to get the same rate quoted by the Hartford Courant. She also organized notices to creditors in The Day and in newspapers in Maine and Puerto Rico.

Sacks also negotiated and obtained court approval for a contract that will return Amistad to Mystic Seaport, where it was built, for winter storage, maintenance and a new marine survey of the ship, its hull and rigging.

The Seaport generously offered a significant discount, charging $6,300 for winter dockage and the use of an indoor building for inspection and work on the ship's rigging.

"This offer was made in the public interest and to safeguard the Amistad as an ambassador of maritime history and Connecticut's maritime heritage, the heart of Mystic Seaport's mission," Sacks told the court.

It's good to know that Sacks is building a solid relationship with the Seaport, which should have a prominent role in its future.

The only sour note for me in Sacks' report to the court was her references to meetings with New Haven officials about deciding the future of the ship.

The other discordant notes were frequent references to negotiations to waive some of the fees charged by New London for visits by the Amistad.

State Rep. Ernest Hewett has publicly pledged to work to make sure New London has a significant role in hosting Amistad into the future. I would urge Mayor Daryl Finizio to get aboard, too, invite the receiver to lunch, offer free office space and utilities in some underused municipal building and, most important, assure her the city will never charge again to dock the Amistad here.

It is unrealistic to expect New Haven won't have a role in the ship's future, given the politics of the big city. But clearly New London is a more appropriate Connecticut port for Amistad to spend time, not just because of the more direct historical connection to the ship's story, but because its waterfront is much more amenable to visitors.

New London can better help Amistad tell its story. And Amistad can do a lot to help build traffic in the evolving tourism component of its port.

Now is the time for New Londoners to jump in, while the course is being set.

This is the opinion of David Collins.

d.collins@theday.com

Twitter: @DavidCollinsct