Slip Shortage

Date: 08.24.06
Source: City Smart Magazine

Condoizing, privatizing and permit problems leave megayachts out at sea

By RACHEL GALVIN

Our tropical waters, festive lifestyle and proximity to the Caribbean make South Florida prime for boaters from around the world and more visit every day. Dubbed “The Venice of America,” Ft. Lauderdale is home to 300 miles of winding Intracoastal waterways and the docks here are filled with yachts of all sizes. But it is the popularity of the megayacht that is suddenly putting the issues of spacing even more in the forefront. Only about 400 marinas worldwide have berths big enough.
Boating is big business in South Florida, bringing in $18.4 billion dollars and 220,000 jobs, according to the Marine Industry of South Florida. Ft. Lauderdale's mayor, Jim Naugle, recently stated that the marine industry has now exceeded tourism. So when a problem affects the marine industry, people take notice.
Yacht owners who both live all over South Florida and venture into the territory are doing their best to negotiate their way into a space for their megayachts, but calling “the right people” doesn't always lead to a solution when it comes to Broward County slips. What boatyards and marinas Hurricane Wilma didn't destroy, developers are swallowing up to create new residential marine inclusive environments.
The problem it seems is that the population and boating industry is booming but the number of slips is not. “There are only so many spaces. [Permitting makes it] difficult to add slips. In addition, there is an increase in the acquisition of marinas for private development. They are actually taking slips away,” said Chris Cantwell of Mainstreet Marketing, whose clients include Loggerhead Marinas.
Old boatyards are being transformed into modern condocommunities, which may include a marina, but only for those who live there. The Chinook marina, for example, one of the area's oldest boatyards, was converted into approximately 300 apartments called the Symphony House. “Developers are buying a marina or dry stack and, due to the high cost of land, are selling rather than renting,” added Frank Herhold of the Marine Industry of South Florida.
Even the slips that are available are often too small to accommodate the growing mega-yacht trend and, because of the lack of space, creating larger slips mean less slips overall—a growing dilemma. With the increased demand and the smaller supply, the economics are simple. The price for slips is going up. Slips “are not being built to comply with new [mega]yachts being built,” said Rupert Connor of Luxury Yacht Corporation. “Dockage rates are high and supply is low.”
Ray Weldon of Ocean Independence Yachts agreed, “Lack of slip space is drastically affecting the megayacht industry in South Florida, particularly Broward County. It hurts the economy, hurts sales and hurts charters.”
Many yacht owners are looking for an alternative to the scarcity found in Broward County. When a mega yacht owner needs to come to this area, they often go to the Caribbean to find slips big enough and waters deep enough.
Seeing the trend to go southward, the city of Miami has been looking to bring the business their way, keeping yachts docked in their area, rather than going all the way to the islands. One of their most impressive options is a planned megayacht complex on Watson Island called Island Gardens. Developed by the Flagstone Group, it designates itself as the first “superyacht” complex in the world.
Meanwhile, the Palm Beaches also are working to improve the situation by implementing their fair share of new slips. A recent $50 million bond issue will help to preserve working waterfronts and public access. One of the most talked about developments is Wayne Huizenga's plans for the 12-acre Rybovich Spencer boatyard and marina in West Palm Beach, which will include condos, retail and restaurants and public marina access. This and other overhauls in the northern realm have brought some yacht owners northward.
Yet in Ft. Lauderdale, which deems itself the 'yachting capital,' the solutions are few and far between. This issue is not only affecting existing yacht owners, but even yacht sales and manufacturers. “Now sales are predicated on where you are going to be able to put your boat. To keep the marine industry alive, we need more industry growth, not less,” said Sales Director Ginger Hornaday, who has worked for over 20 years in the industry.
Furthermore, new development of slips is being hampered by the red tape needed to obtain a permit. And according to Herhold, Broward County is adding insult to injury through a proposed plan that would put a cap on the number of slips. This Broward County Boat Facility Siting Plan is planned to go for a public hearing on August 22nd. The problem, said Herhold, is that “The plan does not focus adequately on the major area of boat manatee mortalities, which is supposed to be the purpose behind the proposal.”
Hornaday agreed, “[This proposal] will definitely hamper the industry if more slips aren't designated.”
Curis Stokes of Sacks Yachts chimed in. “Everyone says the industry is so strong and critical to Broward County. The politicians say they want to help and then they go and propose changes that discourage the industry. No one has addressed the over-development and the taking away of public dockage.”
Eric Myers, Director of Broward County Biological Resources Division, who believes that this proposal will actually make obtaining permits simpler, explained that this proposal meets the third and final requirement imposed by the Department of Environmental Protection. For more information on the plan, visit the county's Web site.
The fight for slip space, it appears, is on and the yachters of Ft. Lauderdale seem to have “slipped” through the cracks. So much rides on the appeasement of these big boat owners, including the jobs of thousands of locals as well as the economy as a whole. Hopefully, supply will meet demand and give “berth” to a better system.
In addition, the yachting lifestyle is what has brought so many to our shores in the first place to visit, to spend and to live. Ginger Hornaday summed it up best, stating that access to the waterways is the key to Fort Lauderdale's lure: “I hope we can preserve what has made South Florida an attractive place to live.”