Beaufort has long had a place for day boaters
I read your article concerning the new day dock in Beaufort, and I thought it was misleading.
While the new dock will be a welcome addition, the article reads like there’s not already a 140-foot day dock on the west end of the Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park. It has been there for years and is used regularly. When it is full, we offer space at the main marina facility for a small fee after the first hour, which is free.
While the mayor’s statement is true, it is incomplete as it relates to City Marina operations. We also cater to small boats on a regular basis. Boat clubs from Charleston, Hilton Head Island, Savannah, Dataw and Edisto are regular weekend guests in season. This past August we had groups of boaters traveling together every weekend.
Most of those boaters are in small boats, and they stay in the downtown hotels and B&Bs, and shop and eat in our stores and restaurants.
And let’s not forget about the festivals. We are full of boats of all sizes, with boaters prepaying their dockage fees because of the demand. Also, a large portion of our dockage revenues are not from long-term customers. In the spring and fall, we will have as many as 10 to 15 boats per night from Intracoastal Waterway travelers. They also patronize downtown businesses.
So, Beaufort will not “finally” get a place for day boaters. They will just get a second dock.
Rick Griffin
general manager
Downtown Marina of Beaufort
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This story was originally published December 17, 2017 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Beaufort has long had a place for day boaters."