Martinez Marina In Hot Water

The Martinez Marina is in hot water financially speaking, and some Martinez officials are ready to close it and let it return to nature. 

The facility needs millions of dollars worth of repairs, including renovation of the eastern breakwater wall and a $300,000 dredging job. Meanwhile, state lawmakers are weighing a bill that would take a bigger share of the marina's diminished revenues in exchange for turning the dilapidated facility over to the city. Meanwhile, the city is scrambling to meet increasingly stringent terms of a $3.1 million state loan.

If all of this falls into place, the marina's private operator has vowed to spend $3 million to install 150 new concrete docks on the now-inoperable east side. But that won't happen if the city cannot find the necessary $4.5 million to make the initial repairs. It is $1.3 million short of what it needs.

At Tuesday's Park, Recreation, Marina and Cultural Commission meeting, at least one commissioner asked city staff to explore shutting down the marina.

"We're paying (the state Department of Boating and Waterways), and saying at the same time that we need money back. That is bureaucracy at its best," said commissioner John Fuller. "I would like to see what it would take to close down the marina."

Fuller was referring to the terms of a proposed state Senate bill — SB 151 — that would turn the marina property over to the city in exchange for 20 percent of marina revenues. City officials are negotiating with the state to reduce that amount.

Meanwhile, a $3.1 million loan from the state Department of Boating and Waterways (DBW) originally approved in 2008 has since been subject to an increasingly stringent set of conditions, including a provision that projects funded through the loan generate enough revenue to repay the loan.

Much of the money will be spent on repair of the eastern wall, which is now allowing silt to pour into the marina, rendering the eastern portion too shallow to allow boats in and out. The city also needs to dredge the entire harbor, at a cost of $300,000.

Recreation manager Mitch Austin said that city staff is investigating closing the marina and returning it to the state in the event that DBW does not commit to an additional $1.3 million loan to complete the work.

"If they’re not willing to close the gap, we won’t have a choice but to give them back the land," Austin told the commission.

At that point, Austin said the State Lands Commission would require the city to return the facility to its natural state.

"It's already there," quipped commissioner Richard Patchin, referring to the fact that three of the docking areas are presently unusable because the silt level is so high it prevents boats from entering and exiting the facility.

However, returning the marina to its natural state would create a problem for DBW, Austin said, because then there would be no revenue to pay back the loans to the city.

"DBW would have the right to come in and take over the marina to secure the loans, so I don’t know how DBW and the State Lands Commission would work that out," he said.