As a harem of seals lounged on the west side of the Oak Harbor Marina Thursday morning, Harbor Master Chris Sublet led Mayor Ronnie Wright, city staff and most of the city council through the docks.
Passing clouds provided windows of sunlight as Sublet noted areas of unstable ground and Band-Aids on the breakwater, sharing stories of the marina’s past and concerns about its future.
Just days ago, the marina turned 50 — a proud accomplishment that unfortunately has brought more than cosmetic problems. Sublet was quick to mention that every small piece of the marina is quite expensive, and $100,000 in infrastructure upgrades, $9 million in breakwater remodels, $50 million in dredging and channel improvements are perhaps decades overdue.
“Countless councils have kicked this down the road, and we are out of road,” said Brian Smith, parks and recreation director. “We need to decide if we are going to pave more road or if we are going to kick the can off the cliff.”
Solutions
The city sees three potential options, each bringing heavy baggage.
The first is a full marina remodel: new infrastructure, new breakwaters, dredging, a bigger channel and a price tag of many millions of unidentified funding.
The second option is to partially fix the marina to buy some time, though Wright was quick to point out that even small fixes are extremely expensive, and it would only be about a decade before the city faces the same problems again. Further, if any sort of emergency or hiccup occurred in the meantime, there is no wiggle room in terms of money or time.
The final option is perhaps the simplest, though it is not nearly as simple as it may seem: closing the marina. According to Sublet, this requires full removal. With this option, the city still needs to identify nearly $11 million and would be cutting off the $5 million the marina brings in annually.
Sublet said there are two options to closing the marina. The first is kicking everyone out and removing the docks, an option that will not be popular, he noted. The other is to slowly phase it out, but this will create infrastructure problems by stripping away parts of the marina that protect the boats. This will cause hazards, especially in the wintertime.
Councilmember Jim Woessner posed the marina as an asset rather than a cost. He wants to remodel the area so more people use it. This could mean restaurants and shops instead of storage units, mini golf or other games nearby and beautifying the pathway between the marina and town.
If the marina becomes an asset to the community, it can be supported by community dollars, he said. For 50 years, the marina has been running on user fees alone.
Who pays?
While a port district broadly supports infrastructure beyond the marina, it will be challenging to get community support from those who do not use the marina, said Councilmember Bryan Stucky. Perhaps a future district, such as a metropolitan parks district, could absorb the duties of the marina.
In the ‘90s, the push for a port district received very little support, Sublet said.
“Everett just tried to expand the boundaries of their port district in the last election,” he said. “It went down in a ball of flames, and they’re a mighty powerful port district.”
There are 75 ports in Washington, and none have been created for 26 years, Smith said.
“Of course, 26 years ago they said they hadn’t created one in 12 years, and then they created that one,” Woessner added.
The city has limited support from grants and legislation. The Army Corps of Engineers rejected partnering with the city, as the primary purpose of the marina is recreation, and it is not a federal navigation channel.
Private-public partnerships are a hard sell with all the improvements needed. Councilmember Barbara Armes seemed somewhat enthusiastic about a business and occupation tax.
“We are in a bind,” she said. “Where are we going? We can’t do property tax. We can’t do sales tax. We’re going to have to bite the bullet somewhere.”
That said, most of her constituents have suggested getting rid of the marina, she said.
In the face of a catch-22, Woessner remained optimistic.
“Most good wins are hard roads, but this could be a huge win if we do this right,” he said.
On Sept. 18, the city will host an open house for the public at City Hall from 6 to 7:30 p.m. regarding the marina. On Sept. 21, the marina will host a 50th birthday party from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. with activities, prizes, games, birthday cake and demonstrations.
City staff toured the Oak Harbor Marina Thursday morning. (Photo by Sam Fletcher)
Councilmembers Bryan Stucky and Barbara Armes watch a seal chase a fish at the Oak Harbor Marina Thursday morning. (Photo by Sam Fletcher)
City staff toured the Oak Harbor Marina Thursday morning. (Photo by Sam Fletcher)
Harbor Master Chris Sublet discusses the future of the Oak Harbor Marina with Mayor Ronnie Wright (left) and Councilmember Christopher Wiegenstein (right) Thursday morning. (Photo by Sam Fletcher)
Photo by Sam Fletcher Harbor Master Chris Sublet (right) discusses the shape of the dock cleats and the recent electrical upgrades with City Administrator Sabrina Combs (left) and Councilmember Jim Woessner (middle) Thursday morning.
Left to right: Parks and Recreation Director Brian Smith, Harbor Master Chris Sublet and Councilmembers Eric Marshall and Christopher Wiegenstein discuss the future of the Oak Harbor Marina Thursday morning. (Photo by Sam Fletcher)
Harbor Master Chris Sublet (left) chats with Councilmember Bryan Stucky (right) over a recently repaired section of F Dock on Thursday morning. (Photo by Sam Fletcher)
