Hi Frank,

The same thing is happening with the Beach Marine marina on the ICW at Beach
Blvd. Apparently, a developer is planning on purchasing the entire site and
building condos. The slips are to be 'reserved' for condo owners, and the
400 or so folks who have their boats in either dry storage or wet slips are
being forced to move. A close friend of mine who stored his boat at Beach
Marine saw the writing on the wall and was able to get dry storage slot over
at Pablo Creek Marina.

The wet/dry storage accomodations in Jacksonville has become so tight that
the impending closure of the Ortega yard along with the Beach Marine marina
will likely push the supply/demand ratio to the extreme. Folks here are
either 1) happy as hell to have a slip and will hang onto it at all costs,
or 2) wondering whether to sell the big boat before storage costs go to
$10.00/ft/month., or 3) considering a trailerable 30 footer so we can tell
the marinas to shove off.

I saw a beautiful 48' Bluewater Coastal Cruiser sitting at Beach Marine
listed in Boats.com for about 180 grand - I shudder to think how that boat
owner must feel knowing his slip is going out from under him.

Kevin