Slips on North Dock Sold to Captain's Inn

The township committee authorized the sale of 16 slips on the North Docks off of East Lacey Road at its caucus meeting Thursday night.

“To us it’s a good move,” Mayor Gary Quinn said. “This is a better business decision for the township.”

The reason for the transaction is twofold,” Quinn said.

“Number one, to get back on the tax rolls and number two, to try and eliminate the investment that we would have to make in order to take and try to keep those docks up to the standards that they have to be at,” he said.

The slips, which are adjoined to the Captain’s Inn, were sold to the restaurant for $442,800.

During October’s committee meeting, residents showed their concern that the township was selling a piece of its history, Quinn said. The contract contains a clause requiring the new owners to keep the pavilion at the site and along the water.

“This property is historical,” resident Pam Brewster said. “It represents how this town came to be. There were fisherman, scallopers, oysters and crabbers at this dock. They all made their living on the water. They are what built this town, and I hate to see it all thrown away.”

Brewster said that recreational waterfront properties are scarce in the town. As part of the park system, the docks bring in revenue while the parks cost a lot of money to maintain.

“This is one of the last pieces of property on the river that the township owns. Once it’s gone, it’s gone,” she said.

The docks are very expensive to maintain, Quinn said. A few years back, the township invested $50,000 and they bring in $16,000 at most annually.

“You start running into enormous numbers to maintain theses slips,” he said. “It gets to the point where you’re not making money, you’re not benefiting in any major way whatsoever.”

Casey Parker, Director of Public Works, would be down at the docks daily during the summer for maintenance, Quinn said. The township will gain more revenue from having the waterfront as a tax source.

Currently the bulkheads need to be replaced and that costs approximately $225 per foot, Quinn said.

The property was also already being utilized by the Captain’s Inn as a parking lot, which was a liability for the township, Quinn said.

Captain’s Inn plans to have slips available for patrons coming in from the water, Quinn said. There are also plans to expand the Tiki Bar in the future, Township Administrator Veronica Laureigh said.

Dock owners with slips that were sold will receive slips on the south docks come spring, Quinn said.

The township has no intention of selling the docks on the south side of town at this time, he added.